straw man

noun

1. a mass of straw formed to resemble a man, as for a doll or scarecrow.
2. a person whose importance or function is only nominal, as to cover another's activities; front.
3. a fabricated or conveniently weak or innocuous person, object, matter, etc., used as a seeming adversary or argument:

   The issue she railed about was no more than a straw man.

straw man

noun

1. a figure of a man made from straw
2. another term for man of straw

straw man

1. A made-up version of an opponent's argument that can easily be defeated. To accuse people of attacking a straw man is to suggest that they are avoiding worthier opponents and more valid criticisms of their own position: “His speech had emotional appeal, but it wasn't really convincing because he attacked a straw man rather than addressing the real issues.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of straw man¹

First recorded in 1585–95

Example Sentences

“It doesn’t really matter where Donald Trump accepts the Republican nomination—if he wins the whole country would be under that rule—I think that’s a straw man argument,” Johnson said.

From Salon

The commissioner’s office sees the players’ complaint as a straw man.

From Seattle Times

"It turned out that neither the country, nor the army, nor Russian industry were ready for war, and so-called Ukraine was far from being a straw man in military terms."

From Reuters

I respectfully suggest that this is a straw man even an Alaskan salmon could identify.

From Salon

Many staff members agreed with Mr. Licht on the general notion that the network should play it straight, and he and others viewed the new leadership as “punching at a straw man.”

From New York Times