toothless tiger
idiomPart oftoothless
toothless tiger — idiom
1. a person, group, law, or rule that appears threatening or powerful but has no re
1.idiom
Definition
a person, group, law, or rule that appears threatening or powerful but has no real ability to cause harm or enforce anything
Example
The commission was called a toothless tiger, since it could issue warnings but never impose fines.
Without the power to shut down illegal factories, the new agency remained a toothless tiger that nobody feared.