Rate this phrase:0.0 / 0 votes

Dead Duck

A ruined person; a person or plan that is certain to die or fail

Etymology:

  • This expression is originated back in mid-to-late 19th century. Here, “Dead” is referred to a plan, project, person or an idea that is hopeless or failed. “Duck” is added in this expression to promote it.
65 Views

Jeddy has failed his test. He’s a dead duck.

Submitted on February 25, 2019

Additional definitions for 'Dead Duck':

dead duckA project that is doomed to failure from the start.
dead duckOne who is in serious danger or trouble.
See them all »

Translation

Find a translation for the Dead Duck phrase in other languages:

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Nearby phrases

Some more phrases from our dictionary similar to Dead Duck

How to pronounce this phrase?

Discuss this Dead Duck phrase with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this Dead Duck definition to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "Dead Duck." Phrases.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 22 Dec. 2024. <https://www.phrases.com/phrase/dead-duck_44602>.

    We need you!

    Help us build the largest human-edited phrases collection on the web!

    Quiz

    Are you a phrases master?

    »
    I think you're missing the wood for the ________.
    A pyre
    B trees
    C fire
    D tyre