Definition of "scapegoat" in English

noun

1. In the Mosaic Day of Atonement ritual, a goat symbolically imbued with the sins of the people, and sent out alive into the wilderness while another was sacrificed.

2. Someone unfairly blamed or punished for some failure.

   • He is making me a scapegoat for his own poor business decisions and the supply chain disruptions caused by the hurricane!

verb

1. (transitive, intransitive) To unfairly blame or punish someone for some failure; to make a scapegoat of.