IdiomBody & Senses
Russian
Russianсыпать соль на рану (sypat' sol' na ranu)
Meaning: To deliberately make someone's suffering worse by adding mockery or fresh insult to their misfortune.
Literally: To pour salt on a wound
Example: “Он напомнил про счёт матча и посыпал соль на рану.” — He mentioned the score and rubbed salt in the wound.
English equivalent: To rub salt in the wound
Equivalents in other languages
German: Salz in die Wunde streuen Literally: To strew salt in the wound
English: rub salt in the wound
Origin: Salt on an open wound stings badly, so pouring it on is making a pain that already exists far worse. Russian uses it for reminding someone of a loss or a humiliation, just as English "rub salt in the wound" and German Salz in die Wunde streuen do. No particular origin or first use is documented.
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Explore another collection: Untranslatable Words
Words that capture a feeling or idea English needs a whole sentence for.
- Beloruchka Someone who dodges dirty or hard work — a person whose hands stay conspicuously clean.
- Zapoi A bender running for days, in which a person drops out of ordinary life entirely.
- Toska A dull ache of the soul; a great longing with nothing in particular to long for.
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