Targeted

How to spell targeted

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce targeted

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does targeted mean?

1. verbDirected or aimed at a particular person, group, or objective.
2. adjectiveSelected as the object of a deliberate effort or attack.

Targeted in a sentence

• verb

  The campaign targeted young professionals in large cities.

• adjective

  A targeted approach saves money by reaching the right customers.

• verb

  The company targeted its advertising at weekend shoppers.

• adjective

  The clinic offers targeted support for new parents.

Where does targeted come from?

Language of origin: French

This is the past tense and past participle of the verb 'target', which itself grew from the noun 'target'. The noun came into English in the late 1300s from the Old French 'targette', a small light shield, a diminutive of 'targe', meaning a shield or buckler. That 'targe' is ultimately of Germanic origin, related to Old English 'targe' and Old Norse 'targa', both naming a round shield. Over the centuries the sense shifted from a shield held up in battle to the round, marked board that archers and gunners aim at, and from there to any objective one aims for. The verb 'target', meaning to aim at or single out, only became common in the twentieth century. The spelling trap sits in the ending: because the stress falls on the first syllable (TAR-get), the final 't' is not doubled, so the correct form is 'targeted', not 'targetted'.

How the word is built

• target (mark to aim at)
• -ed (past tense / past participle suffix)