Goal
Goal noun - Something that one hopes or intends to accomplish.
Usage example: leaving the world a better place than I found it is one of my main goals
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Synonyms for Goal
Purpose is a synonym for goal in aim topic. In some cases you can use "Purpose" instead a noun "Goal", when it comes to topics like address, objective, target, planned. popular alternative
Purpose
Purpose noun - Something that one hopes or intends to accomplish.
Usage example: the purpose of the research is to discover how the virus is transmitted
Goal is a synonym for purpose in intention topic. You can use "Goal" instead a noun "Purpose", if it concerns topics such as address, reason, aim, use. popular alternative
Mutual synonyms
How words are described
| exact | exact goal | exact purpose |
| common | common goal | common purpose |
| specific | specific goal | specific purpose |
| stated | stated goal | stated purpose |
| Other adjectives: express, original, noble, true, single, actual, entire, real, main, ultimate, new, sole, final, apparent, explicit, greater, primary, unknown, intended, different. | ||
Both words in one sentence
- Be they carriers of serious news, friendly correspondence between pen pals, or declarations of heart and heartbreak, each one is written with a clear purpose or goal in mind.
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All of the other AIs running about seem to have some purpose that they're trying to accomplish, but Cubia pops up out of nowhere, and with a somewhat vague explanation of what it is, no one in the series seems to be able to explain what its goal or purpose is, nor how it was created.
- Armor-Piercing Question: In one episode, a Cylon states that their goal and purpose is to organize the entire universe.
Source: Series / Galactica 1980
Cite this Source
Purpose and Goal. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/goal/purpose
Goal & Purpose. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/goal/purpose>.
Purpose or Goal. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/goal/purpose.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "goal" and "purpose" have occurred on timeline