View synonyms for stalking horse

stalking horse

[ staw-king hawrs ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

a horse, or a figure of a horse, behind which a hunter hides in stalking game.
anything put forward to mask plans or efforts; pretext.
a political candidate used to conceal the candidacy of a more important figure or to draw votes from and cause the defeat of a rival.

stalking-horse

a horse or an imitation one used by a hunter to hide behind while stalking his quarry
something serving as a means of concealing plans; pretext
a candidate put forward by one group to divide the opposition or mask the candidacy of another person for whom the stalking-horse would then withdraw

First recorded in 1510–20

Second, there isn't any reason to believe that Obama is using Goldberg as a stalking horse against Netanyahu.

He used a third-party spoiler candidate in the race, Don Sprouse, as an anti-Semitic stalking horse.

Going into the vote, he was denounced as a stalking horse for the presidential aspirations of Barbour, the Mississippi governor.

Back in 2006, Patrick was seen as a stalking horse for Obama.

Butts had been introduced as a stalking-horse, but there was no doubt about Si's admiration of his "handiness."

It was the stalking horse behind which Offenbach hunted the follies of the day and bagged the absurdities of the hour.

For the same reason the passions are the main theme of poets and the stalking horse of actors.

"For my dough they've given up trying to find her and are using you for a stalking horse," he added with fiendish accuracy.

Better never profess than make profession a stalking horse to sin, deceit, the devil, and hell.'

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