add fuel to the fire
Meaning: To make a bad situation worse.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Example: “Posting that angry reply only added fuel to the fire.”
Category: Nature
Origin: An image as old as Latin: the Roman historian Livy wrote of feeding a flame, and John Milton used the English form in Samson Agonistes (1671). A fire burns hotter with more fuel, as a quarrel does with one more remark.
Equivalents in other languages
- French: Jeter de l'huile sur le feu — literally: To throw oil on the fire
- Spanish: Echar leña al fuego — literally: To throw wood on the fire
- Chinese: 雪上加霜 (Xuě shàng jiā shuāng) — literally: To add frost on top of snow
More idioms — Nature
- have stars in one's eyes — To be dazzled or dreamily idealistic, especially about love or fame.
- hit a snag — To run into an unexpected problem.
- rise from the ashes — To be reborn or rebuilt after destruction or failure.
- shed light on — To help explain something or make it clearer.
- blow a gale — Of the wind: to blow extremely hard.
- throw caution to the wind — To stop being careful and take a risk.
More English idioms
- have pins and needles — To feel a prickling, tingling sensation in a limb that has gone numb.
- be on pins and needles — To be very anxious while waiting for something.
- make a killing — To make a lot of money quickly.
- worm something out of someone — To get information from someone gradually and persistently.
- lie low — To stay out of sight and avoid attention.
- eat one's words — To admit that something one said was wrong.
From our compliments & insults
- Bête comme ses pieds — Really not very bright.
- Avoir un poil dans la main — To be incurably lazy.
- Tête de linotte — A scatterbrain who can't hold a thought.