sitting duck

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sitting duck [noun]

someone or something that is very easy for an enemy to shoot or attack

US

/ˌsɪt̬.ɪŋ ˈdʌk/

UK

/ˌsɪt.ɪŋ ˈdʌk/

Example:

With their bullets all gone, the soldiers were sitting ducks for the enemy.

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English

sitting duck

ˌsitting ˈduck BrE AmE (also ˌsitting ˈtarget) noun [countable]
someone who is easy to attack or easy to cheat:
Out in the open, the soldiers were sitting ducks for enemy fire.

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

sitting duck

ˌsitting ˈduck [sitting duck] (also ˌsitting ˈtarget) noun
a person or thing that is easy to attack
Example Bank:

• Its location makes the island a sitting duck for attackers.

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 4th Edition

ˌ sitting ˈ duck

someone or something that is very easy for an enemy to shoot or attack:

With their bullets all gone, the soldiers were sitting ducks for the enemy.

Collins Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary

sitting duck

sitting ducks
N-COUNT
If you say that someone is a sitting duck, you mean that they are easy to attack, cheat, or take advantage of. [INFORMAL]
Nancy knew she'd be a sitting duck when she raised the trap door.

Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary

sitting duck

sitting duck noun, pl ~ ducks [count] : a person or thing that is easy to hit, attack, trick, etc.
• The tourists were sitting ducks for local thieves.

American English

British English

weakness and vulnerability

B2 (Upper-intermediate)

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