"a drop in the bucket"并不是和指“桶里的一滴水”，而是指某个东西的数量跟实际所需的数量比起来，微不足道，跟中文的成语杯水车薪，沧海一粟含义类似。例如，小明想要买最新的苹果手机，但他手上的钱只是"a drop in the bucket"。
例句
The money they donated was just a drop in the bucket.
他们捐赠的钱只是杯水车薪。
The money we've raised so far for the new school is just a drop in the bucket compared to what's actually needed.
我们目前为新学校筹集的资金与实际所需相比，只是杯水车薪。
Volunteering for one day is a drop in the bucket when it comes to solving the larger issue of homelessness.
就解决更大的无家可归问题而言，志愿服务一天只是杯水车薪。
The small refund from the company was a drop in the bucket compared to the overall cost of the defective product.
与有缺陷产品的总成本相比，公司的小额退款只是杯水车薪。
A few hundred dollars of budget cuts are a drop in the bucket in the grand scheme of the nation's economy.
在国家经济的宏观计划中，几百美元的预算削减只是杯水车薪。
The charity donation from the billionaire was generous, but it's a drop in the bucket given his vast wealth.
这位亿万富翁的慈善捐款很慷慨，但鉴于他庞大的财富，这只是杯水车薪。
起源
短语“a drop in the bucket”表示非常小或不重要的数量。这个短语的起源可以追溯到《圣经》中的以赛亚书。在以赛亚书40章15节中，有一句话说：“Behold, the nations are as a drop of the bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance.看哪，万民都像水桶里的一滴水，被算为天平上的微尘；他举起众海岛，好像极微之物。”有趣的是，短语“a drop in the bucket”早于与之相关的短语“a drop in the ocean”，后者最早出现在1802年7月的《爱丁堡周刊杂志》上，描述的场景是：“he votes for the appointment of Bonaparte to be Chief Consul for life are like a drop in the ocean compared with the aggregate of the population of France.赋予拿破仑终身总领职位的投票，比起法国总人口的总和来说，就像海洋中的一滴水。”
满分语法 