С-344

КАК (ЧТО) СЛОНУ ДРОБИНА (ДРОБИНКА) (кому) coll (как etc + NP these forms only subj-compl with быть» ( subj: concr, usu. a noun denoting a small quantity of food or drink) fixed WO

sth. is insufficient in quantity for s.o. : X (Y-y) \С-344 - X is like buckshot to an elephant

X is a drop in the bucket (for Y) (of food only) X is not enough to make a dent in Y's appetite X isn't enough to fill a cavity (of a drink only) X is not enough to wet Y4s whistle.

...Тоненько закрученные сигаретки джойнтов он купил, раскрутил, смешал с обычным сигарным табаком и курил... Конечно, было понятно теперь, почему марихуана не действовала на него, он жаловался на это всё время. «Это же как слону дробинка, курить-то нужно именно эту тоненькую, уже готовую сигаретку, ни с чем не смешивая» (Лимонов 1). ...He bought joints that had been rolled into nice slim cigarettes, unrolled them, mixed them with ordinary cigar tobacco, and then smoked them. Now it was clear, of course, why marijuana didn't affect him

he was always complaining about it. 'That's like buckshot to an elephant. You're supposed to smoke that nice slim ready-made cigarette without mixing it with anything" (1a).