whipping boy

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noun

a person who is made to bear the blame for another's mistake; scapegoat.

(formerly) a boy educated along with and taking punishment in place of a young prince or nobleman.

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Origin of whipping boy

First recorded in 1640–50

Words nearby whipping boy

whipped, whipper-in, whippersnapper, whippet, whipping, whipping boy, whipping cream, whipping post, Whipple, whippletree, whippoorwill

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use whipping boy in a sentence

In the 90s, it kept gay men out of leadership roles in the Boy Scouts of America.
Freaking Out About Age Gaps in Gay Relationships Is Homophobic|Samantha Allen|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
This is Bey and Nicki at their most lyrically masochistic, and boy, is it a treat.
The 14 Best Songs of 2014: Bobby Shmurda, Future Islands, Drake, and More|Marlow Stern|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Interviews in Serial (including ones from Adnan) do acknowledge that Jay was known as a resident bad boy at Woodlawn High School.
The Deal With Serial’s Jay? He’s Pissed Off, Mucks Up Our Timeline|Emily Shire|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The former Virginia governor was once the golden boy of the GOP.
2014 Was a Delectably Good Year for Sleaze|Patricia Murphy|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST

A sepia photo shows him as a young boy, head in his hands, with a large book open at a bar table.
The Bars That Made America Great|Nina Strochlic|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A little boy of four was moved to passionate grief at the sight of a dead dog taken from a pond.
Children's Ways|James Sully
You see, I'd always thought of him as the boy whom Great-aunt Lucia described having seen.
The Boarded-Up House|Augusta Huiell Seaman
Poor Squinty ran and tried to hide under the straw, for he knew the boy was talking about him.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum
A look of passion came into the face of the watching boy, and again he fingered his revolver.
The Courier of the Ozarks|Byron A. Dunn
Several times after this the boy and his sisters came to look down into the pig pen.
Squinty the Comical Pig|Richard Barnum

British Dictionary definitions for whipping boy

whipping boy

noun

a person of little importance who is blamed for the errors, incompetence, etc, of others, esp his superiors; scapegoat

Word Origin for whipping boy

C17: originally referring to a boy who was educated with a prince and who received punishment for any faults committed by the prince

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with whipping boy

whipping boy

A scapegoat, as in This department's always been the whipping boy when things don't go well. This expression alludes to the former practice of keeping a boy to be whipped in place of a prince who was to be punished. [Early 1900s]

whipping boy

Origin of whipping boy

Words nearby whipping boy

Words related to whipping boy

How to use whipping boy in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for whipping boy

Word Origin for whipping boy

Other Idioms and Phrases with whipping boy