(2)president/governor/legislature：(informal)a president, governor etc with no real power because his or her period in office will soon end
美國非正式英語，指任期即將結束的總統、政府等。lame duck常用來形容在美國政界，任期將滿的政界人物所面臨的窘境，尤其是第二個任期即將結束，手中大權即將旁落的總統。因為此時，人們的注意力都集中到候任總統及其未來的政策。這也難怪時下布什總統的“救市”方案為何一再被否，頗有點“樹倒猢猻散”的味道！
不過，可能讓大家最感新鮮的，還是duck用成了動詞。
duck用作動詞，有多個含義。
(1)duck，也常常用成duck down，含義是“to lower your head or body very quickly, especially to avoid being seen or hit”，躲閃，迅速低下身(頭)。
在報道布什躲閃飛鞋時，就有下面的描述：
Throwing shoes at somebody is a supreme insult in the Middle East. One of the shoes sailed over the president's head and slammed into the wall behind him and he had to duck to miss the other one. Maliki tried to block the second shoe with his arm.
(2)duck還指“to move somewhere very quickly, especially to avoid being seen or to get away from someone”，快速躲到某處(特別是避免被人看見或逃脫某人)。例如：
The two suspected attackers ducked into a crowded street and soon disappeared.
(3)duck還可以表示“to avoid something, especially a difficult or unpleasant duty”，躲避，推諉，例如：
The CEO of the company ducked a question from a reporter about the revenue of the company last year.
(4) duck還可以表示“to push someone under water for a short time as a joke”，把某人猛地按入水中，例如：
Tom grabbed him from behind to duck him under the surface.
(5)duck out of something是個短語動詞，表示“to avoid doing something that you have to do or have promised to do”，逃避承諾或該做的事情。例如：
Some college students always duck out of lessons that do not interest them much.
duck用做動詞，不由得讓人想起鴨子在水中的各種姿態，有很形象的意義，用到語句和語段中，讓人產生豐富的聯想。
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