goalpost

Or goal post

[gohl-pohst]

noun

1. a post supporting a crossbar and, with it, forming the goal on a playing field in certain sports, as football.

goalpost

/ ˈɡəʊlˌpəʊst /

noun

1. either of two upright posts supporting the crossbar of a goal

2. to change the aims of an activity to ensure the desired results

Word History and Origins

Origin of goalpost¹

First recorded in 1855–60

Example Sentences

"My worry now, as I'm approaching later life, is when can I actually afford to retire? Because the goalpost seems to move," he says.

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The 99-year-old polo field, where Rogers played with friends including Walt Disney and Clark Gable, is still green and largely unscathed, though the announcer’s booth and goalposts burned.

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Your Party officials have dismissed MoU's complaints as irrelevant and accused it of shifting the goalposts.

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The biotech firm UniQure on Monday reported that the FDA had moved the goalposts for approving its Huntington’s disease gene therapy.

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Their coalition scored a historic victory in 2018, but the alliance began to unravel as the nonagenarian kept shifting the goalposts for handing over power.

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