雪上加霜xuě shàng jiā shuāng(idiom) to make matters even worse

1. 1.

   (idiom) to make matters even worseidiom

2. 2.

   to add insult to injuryidiom

Figurative meaning

To make matters even worse; to add insult to injury.

Literal meaning

To add frost on top of snow.

• 雪snow
• 上on; above
• 加to add
• 霜frost

No attested origin story

雪上加霜 can stand alone after 真是 or 更是 to comment that a new problem has made a bad situation worse.

1. HSK 4

   他刚丢了工作，又生病了，真是雪上加霜。

   Tā gāng diū le gōngzuò, yòu shēngbìng le, zhēn shì xuě shàng jiā shuāng.

   He had just lost his job and then got sick; it really made matters even worse.

2. HSK 4

   路本来就不好走，下雨更是雪上加霜。

   Lù běnlái jiù bù hǎo zǒu, xià yǔ gèng shì xuě shàng jiā shuāng.

   The road was already hard to walk on, and the rain made matters even worse.

1. 
   Speaker A:

   你怎么迟到了？

   Nǐ zěnme chídào le?

   Why are you late?

2. 
   Speaker B:

   车坏了，手机也没电了。

   Chē huài le, shǒujī yě méi diàn le.

   My car broke down, and my phone died too.

3. 
   Speaker A:

   这真是雪上加霜。

   Zhè zhēn shì xuě shàng jiā shuāng.

   That really made matters even worse.

4. 
   Speaker B:

   是啊，今天太倒霉了。

   Shì a, jīntiān tài dǎoméi le.

   Yeah, today was so unlucky.

1. 1.What does 雪上加霜 mean?

   ATo make matters even worseBUnprecedentedCEager to do something without delay
2. 2.Which sentence uses 雪上加霜 correctly?

   A他本来就很累，又加班到半夜，真是雪上加霜。B今天天气很好，真是雪上加霜。C我雪上加霜地吃了午饭。
3. 3.Which idiom fits best? 店里生意不好，房租又涨了，____。 (Business was bad, and then the rent went up, which made matters even worse.)

   A雪上加霜B前所未有C迫不及待

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Related idioms

• 纸上谈兵zhǐ shàng tán bīngtheoretical discussion that is worse than useless in practiceHSK 7–9
• 成千上万chéng qiān shàng wàn(fig.) untold numbers; innumerable; countlessHSK 6
• 一举两得yì jǔ liǎng détwo birds with one stoneHSK 7–9
• 一如既往yì rú jì wǎng(idiom) just as in the past; as before; continuing as alwaysHSK 7–9
• 一目了然yí mù liǎo ránobvious at a glance (idiom)HSK 7–9
• 不可思议bù kě sī yìinconceivable; unimaginable; unfathomableHSK 7–9

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