Idiom
a drop in the bucket
Meaning
A quantity so small it is negligible next to what is actually needed.
Examples
“The fine was a drop in the bucket for a company that size.”
“We raised a thousand pounds, but against the repair bill it was a drop in the bucket.”
“The relief package sounded generous until you divided it across a whole flooded region, at which point each household's share was a drop in the bucket.”
Examples
simple
“The fine was a drop in the bucket for a company that size.”
contextual
“We raised a thousand pounds, but against the repair bill it was a drop in the bucket.”
complex
“The relief package sounded generous until you divided it across a whole flooded region, at which point each household's share was a drop in the bucket.”
Origin
The phrase comes from Isaiah 40:15, which describes the scale of God against the scale of human power: "Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance." Whole nations, the prophet says, weigh no more than a single drop clinging to the rim of an emptied pail.
The image is built to shrink things. Set beside something vast enough, even great powers become a stray drop or a speck of dust — present, but too small to register.
English kept the comparison but narrowed it to matters of quantity. A drop in the bucket is now any contribution so small it barely counts against the size of the problem — a donation dwarfed by the need, or a repayment that hardly dents the debt.
Stories
Kings & Prophets · See all Biblical origin
The rise and fall of kings and the warnings of the prophets.
David and Goliath — A contest in which a much weaker underdog faces a far stronger opponent.
the writing on the wall — A clear sign that something, especially failure or disaster, is on its way.
feet of clay — In someone apparently strong and without failings, a hidden weakness which could lead to downfall.
a leopard cannot change its spots — People rarely change their fundamental nature, however much they may seem to.
how the mighty have fallen — A remark on the dramatic downfall of someone once powerful or admired.
a still small voice — A quiet inner prompting of conscience or intuition.
- Level
- B2 · Upper Intermediate
- Updated