A drop in the bucket

            Mary: Thanks for the donation for the
Children’s Hospital.
Conner: I wish I could give more. I know $100
is a drop in the bucket compared to
what they need.
Mary: It’s still generous of you. Yeah,
we need to raise about $10 million, but if more people give, it’ll really make
a difference to a lot of sick kids.

Meaning: The expression “a drop in the bucket” means that something is very
small when compared to what is necessary. In the example above, Conner has
given Mary a donation for children’s hospital, but he realizes that compared
with the $10 million necessary, it seems almost worthless (which Mary denies).

Second
Example:

When the employees found out how
much money the company had made without giving any raises or bonuses, the
employees were furious. They argued that a small raise for each employee would
have been a drop in the bucket when
compared with the record profits, but the company argued that they were
investing the profits to ensure future growth.

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