yardstick
/ˈjɑːdstɪk/ (bre, ipa) · [jˈɑrdstˌɪk] /ˈjɑːrdstɪk/ (ame, ipa) · [jˈɑrdstˌɪk] /ˈyärd-ˌstik How to pronounce yardstick (audio)/ (ame, mw)
yardstick — noun
- yardsticksingular
- yardsticksplural
1. something people compare results with to decide how good, useful, or successful
something people compare results with to decide how good, useful, or successful they are.
The coach used last season's record as a yardstick for this year's team.
use X as a yardstick for Y
Parents often treat exam scores as a yardstick of their child's progress.
treat something as a yardstick
For Amira, customer trust is a better yardstick than monthly sales.
The charity chose school attendance as a yardstick for the program's success.
文法句型
use + yardstick + for + noun
treat + something + as + a yardstick
a yardstick by which + clause
用法筆記
Often appears after 'as a' or before 'for' when someone is comparing results or performance. Distinguish from sense 2: this sense is figurative and names a basis for judgment, not a physical measuring tool.
常見錯誤
2. a straight stick used for measuring, made to the length of one yard.
a straight stick used for measuring, made to the length of one yard.
Theo grabbed a yardstick to check whether the shelf was exactly three feet wide.
use a yardstick to check length
The art teacher laid a yardstick beside the poster before trimming the edges.
lay a yardstick beside + object
A cracked yardstick hung from the nail above Grandpa's workbench.
During the game, Mina balanced the marble on a yardstick and walked slowly.
- ruler
more general and can be much shorter than a yard
- measuring stick
describes the object without fixing the exact length
文法句型
measure + noun + with + a yardstick
hold + a yardstick + against + noun
用法筆記
Usually refers to a classroom or workshop tool that is physically one yard long. Unlike sense 1, it names the object itself rather than a standard for comparison.