goats

plural of goat
as in victims
a person or thing taking the blame for others an unhappy childhood was the goat he used to rationalize every failure and shortcoming

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of goats The virus has also been known to infect sheep, goats, horses and alpacas. — Sahas Mehra, Scientific American, 28 Oct. 2026 Cows are the most common animal that’s used for calf hair, though goats also occasionally come into the picture. — Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 27 Oct. 2026 More than 60 cases have been confirmed in Texas and New Mexico, with infestations of cattle, sheep, goats, horses and dogs. — Susan Montoya Bryan, Los Angeles Times, 27 Oct. 2026 Thousands of sheep and goats thronged the streets of the Spanish capital on Sunday, drawing large crowds of tourists and locals alike to watch an annual festival recreating the pastoral practice of moving livestock to new grazing grounds. — ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026 It is most commonly reported in cattle, but there have also been cases in sheep, goats, horses and alpaca. — Deidre McPhillips, CNN Money, 23 Oct. 2026 The Livestock Birthing Barn celebrated more than 90 animal births of piglets, goats, calves, lambs and chicks. — Ella Gonzales, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 20 Oct. 2026 The exact story of how coffee was discovered isn’t known for sure, but one popular legend says an Ethiopian goatherd named Kaldi noticed that when his goats ate from a red berry plant, they were infused with energy and stayed awake all night. — Olivia Wakim, AJC.com, 18 Oct. 2026 Telhou uses primal shouts to keep the herd together, while Saâdia uses a slingshot contraption to skillfully throw stones at straying goats. — Jen Murphy, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for goats
Noun
  • On Sunday, Jordan’s Queen Rania and Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah attended a funeral held for the victims while Jordan’s King Abdullah II visited the injured in the hospital earlier.
    — Aoife Walsh, Washington Post, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Relatives of the victims said the arrests brought them some relief.
    — Omar Akour, Los Angeles Times, 27 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • Some veterans say recruiters deceived them and Haitian authorities tortured them; their families call them scapegoats.
    — Astrid Suárez, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
  • This tradition viewed progressive nationalism as using promises of reform and demagogic tirades against scapegoats abroad to distract from their own corruption and irresponsibility.
    — Andre Pagliarini, The Conversation, 22 Sep. 2026
Noun
  • None of this excuses Chris’ malicious behavior, not just toward Carrie but toward her future stepsister, Brooklyn (Rowan Danielle), and the school as a whole, mostly via a fake Instagram account devoted to smearing students and faculty alike.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 21 Oct. 2026
  • They are held to a standard that doesn't include entitlement, excuses, or any agenda other than TEAM.
    — Joe Kinsey OutKick, FOXNews.com, 20 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • Sanctuary staff quickly started separating monkeys quickly, ultimately creating two groups — those who'd experienced the virus, either by getting sick themselves or witnessing others get sick, and those who hadn't experienced the outbreak.
    — Jonathan Lambert, NPR, 23 Oct. 2026
  • From there on, CERMA (Centre d'Enseignement et de Recherches de Médecine Aéronautique) changed its research to flying monkeys.
    — Robert Z. Pearlman, Space.com, 18 Oct. 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Goats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/goats. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster