rub salt in the wound
Meaning: To make someone's pain or humiliation worse.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Example: “Losing was bad enough; the trophy photo rubbed salt in the wound.”
Category: Body & Senses
Origin: Salt was once used to clean wounds, which stung badly. The figurative phrase is common in English from the 19th century.
Equivalents in other languages
- German: Salz in die Wunde streuen — literally: to strew salt in the wound
- Russian: сыпать соль на рану (sypat' sol' na ranu) — literally: to pour salt on a wound
More idioms — Body & Senses
- tread on someone's toes — To offend someone, especially by interfering in what they see as their business.
- get under someone's feet — To be in the way while someone is trying to work.
- keep one's feet on the ground — To stay realistic and unaffected by success.
- become second nature — To become so familiar that one does it without thinking.
- start off on the wrong foot — To begin something badly.
- take one's breath away — To astonish someone with beauty or surprise.
More English idioms
- behind the scenes — Out of public view, where the real work or decisions happen.
- kick up a fuss — To complain loudly and cause a commotion.
- cry at the drop of a hat — To burst into tears very easily.
- been there, done that — Said of an experience one already knows well, often with a shrug.
- think outside the box — To find an unconventional solution.
- not get off the ground — To fail to make any progress at all.
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