🐐 a scapegoat
Concrete Meaning
A person who is unfairly blamed for the wrongdoings, mistakes, or faults of others.
💬 Context & Examples
Often used in corporate, political, or team environments when management needs someone to take the fall for a larger, systemic failure.
- "The junior developer was used as a scapegoat for the massive software crash."
- "Don't try to make me the scapegoat for a terrible marketing decision the entire board approved."
🧠 Pattern Challenge
Test Yourself
In ancient traditions, what physically happened to the literal "scapegoat"?
Show Answer
A goat was symbolically burdened with the sins of the community and sent away to die in the wilderness. This maps perfectly to pushing the blame and punishment onto a completely innocent party.