Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of whipping boy
As head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Fauci has become a standard whipping boy for conservatives pushing back against anti-pandemic restrictions, but few politicians have placed him at the center of their outreach to their political base like DeSantis.
—
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 4 Aug. 2021
Still, having his excoriating assessments collected between hard covers makes for a powerful indictment, the more so because Boehner’s book vividly captures the growing horror of a bartender’s kid who evolved from a reflexive Democrat to a Reagan Republican to a tea party whipping boy.
—Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2021
When Trump loses, Fox will be a whipping boy.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 6 Nov. 2020
Once more, Turkey seems to have become a whipping boy for all manner of interests, some of which have little to do with the realities of Turkey itself.
—Hugh Pope, Foreign Affairs, 21 Oct. 2010
See All Example Sentences for whipping boy
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 4 Aug. 2021
Still, having his excoriating assessments collected between hard covers makes for a powerful indictment, the more so because Boehner’s book vividly captures the growing horror of a bartender’s kid who evolved from a reflexive Democrat to a Reagan Republican to a tea party whipping boy.
—Washington Post, 9 Apr. 2021
When Trump loses, Fox will be a whipping boy.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 6 Nov. 2020
Once more, Turkey seems to have become a whipping boy for all manner of interests, some of which have little to do with the realities of Turkey itself.
—Hugh Pope, Foreign Affairs, 21 Oct. 2010
See All Example Sentences for whipping boy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whipping boy
Noun
-
The most successful so far comes from Tampa, where a circuit court judge in August reaffirmed a statewide injunction pausing DOAH hearings after a Hurricane Milton victim argued the company was violating his rights.—
Mario Ariza,
ProPublica,
15 Sep. 2025
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The motion is still pending, and families of the crash victims urged the court to reject it.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The Bellows fall guy here is Darrin’s boss, Larry Tate, who suspects something but can never prove it.—
Jim Clash,
Forbes.com,
4 Aug. 2025
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Despite his discomfort, the former star yen derivatives trader for UBS and Citigroup has become globally recognized, some might say, as a fall guy for the Libor scandal, which involved myriad actors, including bankers, banks, and even world governments.—
Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez,
Fortune,
29 July 2025
Noun
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To the untrained eye, researchers said the skull resembles the bones of a goat or horse, leading to the team naming the genus after animal sacrifices.—
Irene Wright,
Miami Herald,
17 Sep. 2025
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The virus most commonly spreads among wild birds but can also infect poultry, livestock and other mammals, including goats, coyotes and opossums.—
Marc Ramirez,
USA Today,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Not an excuse, but definitely a factor, from what I was told, in what turned into a sluggish showing on both sides of the ball.—
Dianna Russini,
New York Times,
13 Sep. 2025
-
There isn’t an excuse anymore that an AI maker has nothing available to provide AI ethics guidance.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
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In reality, Vought used an innocent Starlighter as a scapegoat to push their agenda and had Dogknott (Zach McGowan) kill him.—
Olivia Singh,
Forbes.com,
17 Sep. 2025
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Kraus felt that her contributions to the coverage—a deeper theory as to why Maxwell was used as a scapegoat, with plenty of speculation about the past actions of Bill Clinton—weren’t being sufficiently recognized.—
Clare Malone,
New Yorker,
15 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Whipping boy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whipping%20boy. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
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