lame-duck
/ˌleɪm ˈdʌk/ (bre, ipa) · /ˌleɪm ˈdʌk/ (ame, ipa)
lame-duck — 名詞
1. a politician or government still holding office after a successor has been chose
跛腳政客
任期將滿、影響力急遽下降的官員
a politician or government still holding office after a successor has been chosen, with little remaining power to push through new decisions — for example, a US president in the weeks between losing the November election and the January handover.
After Rodrigo lost the November election, he served three months as a lame-duck mayor.
Rodrigo 在十一月選舉落敗後，又以跛腳市長的身分留任了三個月。
predicate noun: serve as a lame-duck [office-holder]
The lame-duck governor signed dozens of pardons during her final week in office.
那位跛腳州長在任期最後一週簽署了數十項特赦令。
attributive: lame-duck + [political role]
Congress rushed several bills through the lame-duck session before the new senators arrived.
國會趕在新一批參議員上任前，於跛腳會期通過了好幾項法案。
As a lame duck, Christopher could not convince his own party to back the proposal.
身為跛腳政客，Christopher 連自家黨內都說服不了，無法讓提案過關。
After Elena's cabinet quit, reporters called her a lame duck before the snap election.
在 Elena 的內閣總辭後，記者在提前大選前就稱她已成了跛腳政客。
- incoming
describes the successor about to take office
- president-elect
specifically the elected successor before the handover
文法句型
a lame-duck [president / governor / administration]
用法筆記
Common in American political reporting. The phrase covers the whole stretch from when the successor is decided until the handover — including a sitting president, governor, or legislature whose replacement has already been elected. Often appears attributively (lame-duck session, lame-duck administration).
常見錯誤
2. a person, company, or project seen as weak or struggling, unable to function wel
績效不彰者
需靠外援才能勉強撐住的弱勢企業或個人
a person, company, or project seen as weak or struggling, unable to function well on its own and likely needing rescue or extra support — for example, a failing business that survives only because the government keeps lending it money.
Critics called the airline a lame duck that kept flying only because of state loans.
評論者稱這家航空公司只是靠政府貸款苟延殘喘的績效不彰者。
call X a lame duck
After touring the silent factory, Henrik dismissed it as a lame duck and walked away.
Henrik 參觀完那座寂靜的工廠後，認定它是扶不起的弱勢企業，轉身就走。
dismiss / treat X as a lame duck
The ferry company stayed a lame duck for years, surviving on city loans alone.
這家渡輪公司多年來一直是扶不起的弱勢企業，只能靠市府貸款撐著。
Hugo's startup turned into a lame duck after its biggest customer walked away.
在最大客戶離開後，Hugo 的新創公司也淪為扶不起的弱勢企業。
Investors lost interest when the ferry project looked like a lame duck after costs doubled.
當那個渡輪計畫在成本翻倍後看起來像扶不起的案子時，投資人就失去了興趣。
- loser
more informal and personal; lame duck applies more naturally to organisations and projects
- failure
broader; can describe a single event, while a lame duck implies an ongoing weak state
- underperformer
neutral business term; lame duck is harsher and suggests rescue is needed
- high-flyer
informal: a person or company doing very well
- success
general antonym; less colourful than lame duck
文法句型
a lame duck (of a person, company, or project)
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1: this sense is about commercial or general weakness (a failing firm, a project that needs propping up), while sense 1 is the narrow political sense (an office-holder whose replacement has been chosen). Often pejorative.