雪上加霜

• 병음: xuě shàng jiā shuāng
• 한자 분석: 雪 = 雨 + 彗 (snow); 上 = a line above a reference point (on top of); 加 = 力 + 口 (strength + mouth — to add); 霜 = 雨 + 相 (rain + mutual — frost)

뜻

설상가상하다(엎친 데 덮친 격이다)

A four-character chengyu. Used when multiple misfortunes strike in succession, each worsening the situation. The opposite concept is 雪中送炭 (sending charcoal in the snow — helping someone in their time of need). Very common in both spoken and written Chinese.

예문

1. 工厂刚刚遭受了一场火灾损失，随即又被相关部门处以高额罚款，真是雪上加霜，令企业主叫苦不迭。
2. 他在失业之际又遭遇了严重的交通事故，医疗费用高昂，雪上加霜的困境让全家陷入了前所未有的经济危机。
3. 这场突如其来的暴风雪对已经因旱灾受损的农业雪上加霜，粮食减产的形势愈加严峻。

사용 가이드

맥락: adversity, business, personal hardship, journalism

어조: negative

올바른 표현

• 公司账户资金紧张，主要供应商又突然宣布终止合作，雪上加霜的局面让管理层不得不紧急召开董事会讨论应对方案。(With the company's accounts already cash-strapped, the sudden announcement by a key supplier to terminate cooperation was a further blow; the compounding crisis forced management to urgently convene a board meeting to discuss countermeasures.)
• 她刚刚从一段艰难的感情中走出来，工作上又遭遇不公正的解雇，雪上加霜的打击让她一度陷入了深深的抑郁。(She had just emerged from a difficult relationship when she suffered an unjust dismissal at work; the compounding blows plunged her into a deep depression for a period.)

피해야 할 표현

• 今天下雨又刮风，真是雪上加霜 — 雪上加霜 should describe genuinely serious compounding misfortunes, not minor daily inconveniences; using it for light weather complaints trivialises the idiom and sounds melodramatic

기원과 역사

Derived from the visual image of snow already weighing heavy, with additional frost adding yet more burden — emphasises cumulative misfortune

문화적 배경

시대: Traditional/Modern

세대: All ages

사회적 배경: Universal