(~s)
1.
If you describe someone or something as a ~, you are critical of them because they are not successful and need to be helped a lot.
...lame-duck industries.
N-COUNT: oft N n disapproval
2.
If you refer to a politician or a government as a ~, you mean that they have little real power, for example because their period of office is coming to an end.
...a ~ government.
N-COUNT: usu N n