Synonyms for scapegoat
Most common
All synonyms
Noun
1. Patsy — someone unfairly blamed or punished for some failure
patsy, fall guy informal, whipping boy
Other
escape goat, goat informal, folk devil, usual suspects
Definitions
- n. 1
Someone unfairly blamed or punished for some failure.
He is making me a scapegoat for his own poor business decisions and the supply chain disruptions caused by the hurricane!
Related words
- Is a kind of
- outcast
- Other spellings
- escapegoat
Forms
- Plural
- scapegoats → patsies, goats…
Example sentences
- patsy Layla saw Fadil as a patsy with a wallet.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| scapegoat | steady | |
| patsy | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- goat1
- 5 letters
- patsy2
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (patsy2 = 2 syllables).