dead duck

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See synonyms for: dead duck / dead ducks on Thesaurus.com

noun

a person or thing that is beyond help, redemption, or hope: One more missed opportunity and this whole enterprise is a dead duck.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of dead duck

An Americanism dating back to 1820–30; originally, in political slang, a person who has lost influence or power and is therefore useless; perhaps from the proverb “never waste powder on a dead duck”

Words nearby dead duck

dead center, dead centre, dead data, dead drop, dead drunk, dead duck, deaden, dead end, deadening, deadeye, deadfall

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use dead duck in a sentence

The cartoonist, better known as Charb, was shot dead Wednesday.
France Kills Charlie Hebdo Murderers|Nico Hines|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A policewoman was shot dead this morning while law enforcement searched for the Charlie Lebdo killers.
France Mourns—and Hunts|Nico Hines, Christopher Dickey|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Absent a body, no one can say with absolute certainty whether Castro is dead, even if all signs point in that direction.
An Informant, a Missing American, and Juarez’s House of Death: Inside the 12-Year Cold Case of David Castro|Bill Conroy|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is dead.
In the Middle East, the Two-State Solution Is Dead|Dean Obeidallah|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Yes, Byrd—dead four-and-a-half years now—was a Kleagle in the Ku Klux Klan.
Steve Scalise and the Right’s Ridiculous Racial Blame Game|Michael Tomasky|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST
A little boy of four was moved to passionate grief at the sight of a dead dog taken from a pond.
Children's Ways|James Sully
When he plays a sonata it is as if the composition rose from the dead and stood transfigured before you.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
To-day I'm more dead than alive, as we had a lesson from him yesterday that lasted four hours.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
It was no wonder that he felt quite at home in the duck-pond, which was made for web-footed folk.
The Tale of Grandfather Mole|Arthur Scott Bailey
It is a fearsome thing for a man to be left alone in the dead of night with a young baby.
The Joyous Adventures of Aristide Pujol|William J. Locke

British Dictionary definitions for dead duck

dead duck

noun

slang a person or thing doomed to death, failure, etc, esp because of a mistake or misjudgment

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with dead duck

dead duck

A person doomed to failure or death; a hopeless case. For example, If they can't find a heart to transplant soon, he's a dead duck. [1940s]

A useless, worthless, or outmoded person or thing. For example, They didn't interview the outgoing senator; to the press he's a dead duck. Some speculate that this slangy term comes from an old saying, “Never waste powder on a dead duck,” first recorded in 1829.

dead duck

Origin of dead duck

Words nearby dead duck

Words related to dead duck

How to use dead duck in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for dead duck

Other Idioms and Phrases with dead duck