whipping post
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of whipping post
First recorded in 1590–1600
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.
The monument is believed to be located where a slave whipping post once stood, and removing it is a small step in the right direction, Portsmouth activist and organizer Rocky Hines said.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 11, 2020
It doesn’t really matter, but the next-to-last image, presumably supposed to represent slavery in the United States, actually depicts a whipping post in Delaware.
From Slate ● Mar. 31, 2019
From the mouths of mayors and city councilmen, all the way to presidential candidates, drug companies have become a public whipping post as public figures seek to assign blame for high prescription drug costs.
From US News ● Jan. 8, 2016
"I don't want to have this conflict. I don't want to be in the spotlight, and I certainly don't want to be a whipping post," said Davis, who like the governor is a Democrat.
From Reuters ● Sep. 14, 2015
On his way to school he looked at the stocks and the whipping post, which had a salaried official to attend to the duties connected with it.
From History of American Literature by Halleck, Reuben Post
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.
