whipping boy
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.
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,
whipple's disease,
whipple's operation
Example sentences from the Web for whipping boy
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
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]