Emma
What is the difference between "goals" and "targets" ? How do you use them ? When I read the dictionary I thought they were synonyms but I read this in a sentence : " ...I had a lot of goals and targets to achieve..."
Nov 25, 2015 10:42 PM
Answers · 5
2
These words, plus, "objectives", cause a lot of confusion, but essentially, they mean the same thing. When they mean something different, it is usually specific usage within an organization, where for example they might use: Objectives = big, broad, general things to achieve Goals = more specific things, often that are steps to achieving an objective Targets = very specific things. But this is only an example. To me, in the sentence fragment you cite, using both "goals" and "targets" is just needless repetition.
November 25, 2015
The word "Target" is almost always used for practice with a weapon. You know that thing (sometimes made of paper) that a person shoots at when practicing with a gun or a bow and arrows? That's called a "target" in English. We almost never use it for "goals." When used for "goals," it would be somewhat metaphorical. The other common use for "Target" in the United States is for a store called "Target." In this case, you will always see it capitalized. Incidentally, the icon used by he Target chain of stores looks like a big red shooting target.
November 26, 2015
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