scapegoat

noun/ˈskeɪpɡoʊt/

Frequency rank: #11,646 of 20,003 in the WORDED list (wordfreq data)

Meaning

A person who is blamed for the wrongdoings or mistakes of others.

Illustration for the English word “scapegoat”

Example sentence

The manager became the scapegoat for the entire project's failure, even though many others were responsible.

Synonyms & related words

More words in ranks 11,601–11,700