add insult to injury

Idioms  

1. Hurt a person's feelings after doing him or her harm; also, make a bad situation worse. For example, Not only did the club refuse him, but it published a list of the rejected applicants—that's adding insult to injury, or The nearest parking space was half a mile away, and then, to add insult to injury, it began to pour: The phrase is an ancient one, even older than its often cited use in the Roman writer Phaedrus's fable of the bald man and the fly. A fly bit the head of a bald man, who, trying to crush it, gave himself a heavy blow. The fly then jeered, “You want to avenge an insect's sting with death; what will you do to yourself, who have added insult to injury?” In English it was first recorded in 1748.

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Example Sentences

Higher ticket prices only add insult to injury.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 6, 2026

Whatever happens in the Super Bowl, either Maye or Darnold is guaranteed to hoist the Lombardi Trophy—and add insult to injury for Gang Green.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 29, 2026

"The delays in bringing perpetrators to court really does add insult to injury," said Andrew Goodacre, chief executive of the British Independent Retailers Association.

From BBC • Nov. 19, 2025

To add insult to injury, here’s the most camp performance to hit the silver screen in a minute.

From Salon • Nov. 8, 2025

To add insult to injury, she’s just going on about her life like me not being around has no effect on her whatsoever.

From "Odd One Out" by Nic Stone