TARGET Synonyms: 157 Similar and Opposite Words

target 1 of 2

noun

ˈtär-gət

Definition of target

as in victim

a person or thing that is the object of abuse, criticism, or ridicule the hapless vice president quickly became the favorite target of late-night comedians

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Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in joke

a person or thing that is made fun of a badly made TV commercial that became the target of lots of jokes

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in goal

something that one hopes or intends to accomplish our target is to raise $100,000 for a new playground by August

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

target

2 of 2

verb

as in to taunt

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Dissimilar Words

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 target

Noun

Not everyone wants to be an explorer, but for people who do, Mars is this incredibly intriguing target. — Lee Billings, Scientific American, 15 Oct. 2026 That creates another layer of variation alongside differences in active ingredients and receptor targets. — Emma Clapp, Sacbee.com, 15 Oct. 2026

Verb

The hope is that the mRNA vaccine can target emerging strains quicker, according to the CDC. — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 2 Oct. 2026 Keep watching your accounts afterward RatHat can target banking credentials and authentication codes, so cleaning the phone should not be the end of your response. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for target

Recent Examples of Synonyms for target

Noun

In delivering her victim impact statement, Collins’ mother said their family can’t look at a bathtub without thinking of what happened.

— Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 13 Oct. 2026
The entry is paired with a suite of portraits of a number of Black men and women wearing MooreWraps, versatile multi-wear garments created by Moore’s sister with proceeds donated to victims of domestic violence and incarceration.

— Stephanie Wambugu, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of victim

Noun

Its frothy, pastel hues and single moment of contrived levity (when one dance claims a trumpet solo for a joke about jamming her toe) is one of those quintessential examples of Balanchine’s repertoire showing its age.

— Lauren Warnecke, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026
And the Longhorns’ quarterback, Arch Manning, was the butt of the joke.

— Noah White, Miami Herald, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of joke

Noun

The Biden administration built it back and set a goal of admitting 125,000 refugees during the final year of his term.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 15 Oct. 2026
The company currently takes about a day to build a robot, with the goal of reducing the process to approximately one hour next year.

— Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of goal

Verb

The woman, who also reported it to the league, alleged that Jackson refused to delete the video and taunted her with it.

— Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026
Last week, Greenlaw was fined $11,941 for unsportsmanlike conduct after taunting the Broncos' sideline and head coach Sean Payton.

— Armando Salguero OutKick, FOXNews.com, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of taunt

Noun

Don’t let the building’s modern facade fool you, the rooms are minimalist yet warm with wood flooring, floral wallpaper, and hand-knotted rugs.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Oct. 2026
In these labors, Carson is akin to two other recent laureates, Jon Fosse and László Krasznahorkai, our foremost writers of holy fools.

— Merve Emre, New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of fool

Noun

Moscow has been widely accused by Western officials of running a campaign of sabotage and disruption, including with the use of drones, with the aim of undermining support for Ukraine and destabilizing European nations.

— ABC News, ABC News, 18 Oct. 2026
Basis trades are an arbitrage bet in which hedge funds are positioned long in cash Treasurys while shorting their corresponding futures contracts, with the aim of profiting from the price gap.

— Hugh Leask, CNBC, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of aim

Verb

In an interview with Inside Edition on Tuesday, store owner Adam Rubin said that his store has been review-bombed since Clarkson took to social media and named the store, and employees and surrounding businesses have been harassed.

— Payton Turkeltaub, Variety, 14 Oct. 2026
Kirschner said that his staff has been overwhelmed with homeless individuals causing property damage and harassing customers.

— Melody Xu, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of harass

Browse Nearby Words

tardy

target

targeted

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Cite this Entry

Style

“Target.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/target. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of target

noun

verb

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