noun
goat
A person blamed for a failure.
The missed kick makes him the goat of the game.
Etymology
Goat shortens scapegoat. The longer word invokes the biblical animal bearing away the community’s sins, and the shortened form keeps the transferred burden of blame.
More examples
- When the project fails, the newest employee becomes the goat.
- She refuses to be the goat for her manager's mistakes.
- Fans make the coach the goat after another disappointing loss.
Forms
goat · goats
Similar words
- scapegoat
- Emphasizes unfairly taking blame that belongs to other people.
- patsy
- Usually someone easily manipulated into taking blame for others.