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It means to exacerbate a problem or make it bigger. Just like pouring literal gasoline/petrol on a fire makes it bigger, retaliation, insults, hurtful words, or violence usually makes personal problems bigger and escalates whatever dispute.

If you add fuel to the fire, you make it bigger -- thus, you're making a bad situation worse.

Literally, it means to add wood, flammable liquids, or other combustibles to a fire.

Figuratively, the phrase "add fuel to the fire" means to take a tense or bad situation and make it worse. It means you exacerbate a problem.

For example, if a married couple were fighting, it would be considered "adding fuel to the fire" for a third party to accuse one of them of cheating without proof. Or, if someone is insulting you and you insult them back, that is an example of adding fuel to a fire.

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