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  What it means

  Literally “to pour oil onto the fire.” Figuratively, it means to make a bad situation worse — to inflame a conflict or argument rather than calm it down. Poles use it when someone’s words or actions escalate tension unnecessarily, for example by bringing up old grievances during an argument. It’s the Polish equivalent of “adding fuel to the fire.”

  Vocabulary

  • dolewać — to pour (imperfective, habitual)
  • oliwa — olive oil / oil
  • ogień — fire (ognia = genitive)

  Grammar note

  The imperfective verb 'dolewać' (not 'dolać') is used here because the action is ongoing or habitual — someone keeps making things worse. 'Oliwy' and 'ognia' are both in the genitive case, required after verbs of adding/pouring and after 'do' (to/into).

  Cultural context

  This phrase is widely used in everyday Polish, from casual conversation to journalism. It's neutral in register and appears frequently when describing political figures or family quarrels. The English equivalent 'to add fuel to the fire' maps almost exactly.

  Intermediate

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