Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A graduated measuring stick one yard in length.
  • noun A test, standard, or model used in measurement, comparison, or judgment.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A stick or rod exactly 3 feet long, generally marked with subdivisions, as quarters and eighths of the yard on the one side, and inches, or perhaps feet and inches, on the other. See yard, n., 3, 4.
  • noun Figuratively, a standard of measurement in general.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A stick three feet, or a yard, in length, used as a measure of cloth, etc.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A measuring rod thirty-six inches long.
  • noun figuratively A standard to which other measurements or comparisons are judged.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a ruler or tape that is three feet long
  • noun a measure or standard used for comparison

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

yard +‎ stick

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Examples

  • I got involved because I think people shouldn't be denied access to opportunity based on criteria that have nothing to do with their abilities -- whether the yardstick is the color of their skin or the economic circumstances of their parents (or, of course, their gender).

    Paula Goldman: No, Seriously... What About Men? Paula Goldman 2010

  • I got involved because I think people shouldn't be denied access to opportunity based on criteria that have nothing to do with their abilities -- whether the yardstick is the color of their skin or the economic circumstances of their parents (or, of course, their gender).

    Paula Goldman: No, Seriously... What About Men? Paula Goldman 2010

  • I got involved because I think people shouldn't be denied access to opportunity based on criteria that have nothing to do with their abilities -- whether the yardstick is the color of their skin or the economic circumstances of their parents (or, of course, their gender).

    Paula Goldman: No, Seriously... What About Men? Paula Goldman 2010

  • I got involved because I think people shouldn't be denied access to opportunity based on criteria that have nothing to do with their abilities -- whether the yardstick is the color of their skin or the economic circumstances of their parents (or, of course, their gender).

    Paula Goldman: No, Seriously... What About Men? Paula Goldman 2010

  • I got involved because I think people shouldn't be denied access to opportunity based on criteria that have nothing to do with their abilities -- whether the yardstick is the color of their skin or the economic circumstances of their parents (or, of course, their gender).

    Paula Goldman: No, Seriously... What About Men? Paula Goldman 2010

  • I got involved because I think people shouldn't be denied access to opportunity based on criteria that have nothing to do with their abilities -- whether the yardstick is the color of their skin or the economic circumstances of their parents (or, of course, their gender).

    Paula Goldman: No, Seriously... What About Men? Paula Goldman 2010

  • I was responding to the statement that English speakers don't like Spanish speakers and trying to convey that Americans who judge everything by a certain yardstick just don't understand what they are seeing when they see illegals doing certain things.

    The Facts Concerning Violent Crimes Committed Against US Tourists in Mexico 2010

  • I was responding to the statement that English speakers don't like Spanish speakers and trying to convey that Americans who judge everything by a certain yardstick just don't understand what they are seeing when they see illegals doing certain things.

    The Facts Concerning Violent Crimes Committed Against US Tourists in Mexico 2010

  • I was responding to the statement that English speakers don't like Spanish speakers and trying to convey that Americans who judge everything by a certain yardstick just don't understand what they are seeing when they see illegals doing certain things.

    The Facts Concerning Violent Crimes Committed Against US Tourists in Mexico 2010

  • I was responding to the statement that English speakers don't like Spanish speakers and trying to convey that Americans who judge everything by a certain yardstick just don't understand what they are seeing when they see illegals doing certain things.

    The Facts Concerning Violent Crimes Committed Against US Tourists in Mexico 2010

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