Current master, hopeless (6)
I believe the answer is:
stream
'current' is the definition.
('stream' can be a synonym of 'current')
'master hopeless' is the wordplay.
'hopeless' is an anagram indicator.
'master' anagrammed gives 'STREAM'.
(Other definitions for stream that I've seen before include "Master (anag) - current" , "Moving water" , "Quantity of water" , "Flow from master" , "Brook, burn" .)