weak link

1. The least dependable member of a group, as in The shipping department, slow in getting out orders, is our weak link in customer service, or They're all very capable designers except for Ron, who is clearly the weak link. This expression alludes to the fragile portion of a chain, where it is most likely to break. [Mid-1800s]

Example Sentences

They are just looking for a weak link, he tells Panorama.

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Culkin, the weak link in the otherwise sturdy “Glengarry” revival, was passed over for a featured actor nomination.

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I, like many others, thought he would be the weak link against City, and expected Erling Haaland to get away from him and score.

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But to be effective, there cannot be any weak link in the defense.

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The mega-blip, however isolated, fuelled accusations that Germany has long been a “weak link” within the European counter-intelligence due to a fragmented, federalised system that’s underpinned by a strong emphasis on individuals’ privacy.

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