To further a loss with mockery or indignity; to worsen an unfavorable situation.

Etymology:

  • This was derived from the fables of Phaedrus in the first century CE. The story was of a bald man who swats at a fly which has just landed on his head, but instead hits himself on the head. The fly comments, "You wished to kill me for a touch. What will you do to yourself since you have added insult to injury?" The actual wording appears in English from the middle of the 18th century.
381 Views

They told me I was too old for the job, and then to add insult to injury, they refused to pay my expenses!

Submitted by chelsea_c on December 28, 2018

Translation

Find a translation for the add insult to injury phrase in other languages:

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Nearby phrases

Some more phrases from our dictionary similar to add insult to injury

How to pronounce this phrase?

Discuss this add insult to injury phrase with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this add insult to injury definition to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "add insult to injury." Phrases.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.phrases.com/phrase/add-insult-to-injury_42492>.

    We need you!

    Help us build the largest human-edited phrases collection on the web!

    Quiz

    Are you a phrases master?

    »
    I think you're missing the wood for the ________.
    A fire
    B tyre
    C pyre
    D trees

    Browse Phrases.com