Meaning of 杯水车薪
杯水车薪 means a completely inadequate measure; a futile effort. Pronounced bēi shuǐ chē xīn.
- a completely inadequate measure; a futile effort
Definitions & Examples
Gōng公
sī司
kuī亏
sǔn损
yán严
zhòng重
，
zhè这
diǎn点
tóu投
zī资
bù不
guò过
shì是
bēi杯
shuǐ水
chē车
xīn薪
。
The company is suffering severe losses; this small investment is merely a drop in the bucket.
Duì对
yú于
zhè这
chǎng场
dà大
miàn面
jī积
de的
zì自
rán然
zāi灾
hài害
，
wǒ我
men们
gè个
rén人
de的
juān捐
kuǎn款
zhǐ只
néng能
shì是
bēi杯
shuǐ水
chē车
xīn薪
。
Faced with such a large-scale natural disaster, our personal donations can only be a futile gesture.
Tā他
de的
bìng病
qíng情
hěn很
zhòng重
，
chī吃
zhè这
diǎn点
yào药
jiǎn简
zhí直
shì是
bēi杯
shuǐ水
chē车
xīn薪
。
His illness is very serious; taking this little medicine is utterly useless.