as in criterion
something set up as an example against which others of the same type are compared
this essay will be the yardstick by which I grade the others
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Recent Examples of yardstick
By this yardstick, humans accomplished in a few hundred thousand years what otherwise would have required tens of millions.
—
Cody Cottier,
Scientific American,
4 June 2026
The test was designed around us, and suffers from both anthropocentrism (treating humans as the yardstick) and anthropomorphism (projecting human traits onto other animals).
—
Federica Sgorbissa,
ArsTechnica,
24 May 2026
There was letter-sound bingo, guess-the-sound flashcards and even a visit from a special spelling helper — a toy owl, named Echo, who lives at the end of a yardstick.
—
Cory Turner,
NPR,
13 May 2026
Expressing costs in a fiat currency provides a stable yardstick for each coin.
—
Malana Vantyler,
Miami Herald,
29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for yardstick
Cody Cottier,
Scientific American,
4 June 2026
The test was designed around us, and suffers from both anthropocentrism (treating humans as the yardstick) and anthropomorphism (projecting human traits onto other animals).
—
Federica Sgorbissa,
ArsTechnica,
24 May 2026
There was letter-sound bingo, guess-the-sound flashcards and even a visit from a special spelling helper — a toy owl, named Echo, who lives at the end of a yardstick.
—
Cory Turner,
NPR,
13 May 2026
Expressing costs in a fiat currency provides a stable yardstick for each coin.
—
Malana Vantyler,
Miami Herald,
29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for yardstick
Recent Examples of Synonyms for yardstick
Noun
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Wellness considerations are increasingly factoring into how families evaluate prospective colleges—not as a soft afterthought but as a primary criterion.
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Chrysler and Dodge didn’t meet the study’s award criteria.
Noun
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In March, the administration filed a new lawsuit again trying to block California’s ability to set stricter-than-federal emissions standards for cars.
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And an Air Quality Alert was issued midday Thursday, due to ground level ozone concentrations reaching unhealthy standards, NWS forecasters say.
Noun
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Spot prices reflect real-time market trading and serve as a benchmark for futures contracts, ETFs and retail bullion pricing.
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Next Health’s most popular IV membership, at $299 a month, bundles two IV drips, two vitamin shots and monthly access to cryotherapy, infrared LED, hyperbaric oxygen and body composition scans, which is a useful benchmark for how the membership math actually works at a mid-tier clinic.
Noun
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The agency also adopted additional security measures, such as surrounding the president with bullet-resistant glass at outdoor events.
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Rodríguez said emergency economic measures will include relief funds for victims and temporary waivers on documentation and property registration fees to facilitate housing relocation.
Cite this Entry
“Yardstick.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/yardstick. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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