patsy
1 Americannoun
plural
patsies-
a person who is easily swindled, deceived, coerced, persuaded, etc.; sucker.
-
a person upon whom the blame for something falls; scapegoat; fall guy.
-
a person who is the object of a joke, ridicule, or the like.
noun
-
a person who is easily cheated, victimized, etc
-
a scapegoat
Etymology
Origin of patsy
An Americanism dating back to 1900–05; origin uncertain
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Three days later, he recanted that confession and spent the rest of his life professing his innocence, claiming that he was made a patsy for the real assassin, a man he called “Raoul.”
From Slate • Dec. 1, 2025
And I don’t see the party as playing the patsy, either.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 16, 2025
After all, she played the role of the getaway driver when he fled the process server last year, so clearly she's got a history of being a willing patsy for her husband's shady behavior.
From Salon • Sep. 7, 2023
He is Gov. Alfred E. Smith of New York, a populist Democrat who is Moses’ patron and also, one begins to suspect, his patsy.
From New York Times • Oct. 26, 2022
Regibald du Burgh announced, “I accept the challenge of the once-archivist Werfel, traitor to his own people, elf-friend, patsy for the enemy.”
From "The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge" by M.T. Anderson and Eugene Yelchin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
