A Target Was a Small Shield
A target is what you aim at. The word first meant a light shield, and shooting marks took the name because of their round shape.
A target is what you aim at, or a result you intend to reach. The word began as armour: Old French *targe* was a small round shield, and English made a diminutive of it. Shooting marks were round like shields, so they took the name — and the thing you defended yourself with became the thing you shot at.
- Something aimed at. *He missed the target.*
- A goal. *An emissions target.*
- A person singled out. *A target of criticism.*
- Verb, to aim at. *The campaign targets young voters.*
- On target — going to plan. *We are on target.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | target | A moving target. |
| Plural | targets | Annual targets. |
| Verb | target | Target the message. |
| Adjective | targeted | Targeted support. |
| Old French | targe | A small shield. |
- The arrow struck the target dead centre.Literal.
- The department missed its target by a wide margin.Goals.
- They were an easy target for the press.Figurative, of a person.
Target idioms
- On target — proceeding as planned
- Off target — missing the mark
- Sitting target — someone unable to defend themselves
- Moving target — something that keeps changing
- Soft target — an easy or poorly defended one
Old French *targete*, a small shield, a diminutive of *targe*, from a Germanic source. The shooting sense appears in English in the 1750s.
Why is a shooting mark called a target?
Because early marks were round like the small shields called targes, and the name transferred from the shield to the mark.
Is target a verb?
Yes, and a very common one in business and marketing. It is recorded as a verb from the nineteenth century.