punch bag
6
5.0
- noun
- /ˈpʌnʧ bæg/
- Offensive
:
saco de boxeo
- You are not gonna make my husband your punching bag all over again.
- become a punch bag
- political punching bag
- human punching bag
The least funniest person in the room is always the punching bag.
- The least funniest person in the room is always the punching bag.
- But to be a punching bag for their rage helps no one and is actually very bad for your health.
Examples
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'Cause then people just start seeing you as a punching bag.
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Fieri is a polarizing figure; while he's been the punching bag of critics, he's also beloved by many fans and even has a slew of impersonators.
Blog text (11) -
You are a human punching bag.
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What you said about being a human punching bag, you definitely look the part.
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Nobody respects a punching bag.
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We are taught to "do no harm," but we should never be somebody's punching bag, or worse.
Blog text (6) -
You've just made yourself a permanent punching bag.
Blog text (14) -
Richard Dawkins has been a punching bag for the comments he made about the incident, and rightfully so.
Blog text (32) -
Throughout the play, Nancy is a punching bag and the beatings grow progressively worse.
Blog text (10) -
At work, I often feel like a punch bag for my boss's frustrations.
Synonyms
5
4.2
A person others often blame or shout at when they are angry
How Targeted
Surface Forms
Morphology
The literal parts 'punch' (a blow) and 'bag' (an object) combine to evoke the image of something that receives repeated blows, so a learner can infer a metaphorical meaning of someone who is regularly attacked or blamed. However, the leap from a literal training device to the idiomatic use for a person as a scapegoat or target of verbal/psychological abuse is a figurative extension that may not be fully predictable without exposure. Therefore it is partially transparent rather than fully compositional.
Etymology
Punch bag is also used for a person who is treated like a target for blame or insults. The image comes from the training bag that takes many blows, so the phrase means 'a person who is repeatedly blamed or abused'.