Add insult to injury
hurt a person’s feelings after doing him or her harm; also, make a bad situation worse. for example, not only did the club refuse him, but it published a list of the rejected applicants—that’s adding insult to injury, or the nearest parking sp-ce was half a mile away, and then, to add insult to injury, it began to pour: the phrase is an ancient one, even older than its often cited use in the roman writer phaedrus’s fable of the bald man and the fly. a fly bit the head of a bald man, who, trying to crush it, gave himself a heavy blow. the fly then jeered, “you want to avenge an insect’s sting with death; what will you do to yourself, who have added insult to injury?” in english it was first recorded in 1748.
Read Also:
- Add one's two cents in
add one’s two cents in related terms put one’s two cents in verb phrase to volunteer one’s advice, esp when it is not solicited; kibitz: if i may put my two cents in, i think we should shut up (1930s+)
- Address
a speech or written statement, usually formal, directed to a particular group of persons: the president’s address on the state of the economy. a direction as to the intended recipient, written on or attached to a piece of mail. the place or the name of the place where a person, organization, or the like is […]
- Put one's two cents in
put one’s two cents in verb phrase to volunteer one’s advice, esp when it is not solicited; kibitz: if i may put my two cents in, i think we should shut up (1930s+)
- Add up to
to unite or join so as to increase the number, quant-ty, size, or importance: to add two cups of sugar; to add a postscript to her letter; to add insult to injury. to find the sum of (often followed by up): add this column of figures. add up the grocery bills. to say or write […]
- Addams
charles (samuel) 1912–88, u.s. cartoonist. jane, 1860–1935, u.s. social worker and writer: n-bel peace prize 1931. contemporary examples when you had the bit part as a police desk sergeant in the film addams family values, was it your dream one day to play gomez? nathan lane’s final musical? kevin sessums april 7, 2010 you also […]