bēi杯cupshuǐ水waterchē车cartloadxīn薪firewood
A drop in the bucket; an utterly inadequate remedy.
Literal meaning
cup (杯) — water (水) — cartload (车) — firewood (薪)
Origin
A classical four-character phrase describing a futile effort.
Examples
zhè这diǎn点qián钱duì对yú于jiě解jué决zhè这ge个wèn问tí题lái来shuō说，jiǎn简zhí直shì是bēi杯shuǐ水chē车xīn薪。
This little bit of money is simply a drop in the bucket when it comes to solving this problem.
tā他de的nǔ努lì力suī虽rán然zhí值dé得zàn赞shǎng赏，dàn但duì对yú于zhěng整gè个jú局shì势lái来shuō说，zhǐ只shì是bēi杯shuǐ水chē车xīn薪。
His efforts are admirable, but they are just a drop in the bucket in terms of the overall situation.
Usage & nuances
Highlights the futility of an action due to its insignificance.
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