Cultural Insight:
Chengyu (idioms) are treasures of the Chinese language. Usually consisting of just four characters, they contain a complete story or profound meaning. "画蛇添足" literally means "to draw a snake and add feet to it." The story comes from ancient times: several people competed to draw a snake; the fastest one would win a drink. One person finished first, and seeing others still drawing, he added feet to his snake. Consequently, the wine was taken by someone else who said, "A snake originally has no feet; how could you add feet to it?" This idiom tells us: doing unnecessary things can spoil the effect and ruin the matter.

Useful Sentences:

1. 你这样做简直是画蛇添足。 - What you are doing is simply drawing a snake and adding feet.

2. 我们要学会适可而止。 - We need to know when to stop.

3. 这个故事告诉我们一个道理。 - This story teaches us a lesson.

4. 多此一举。 - Making an unnecessary move (a synonym).

Grammar Corner: The Adverb "简直 (jiǎnzhí)"
"简直" means "simply" or "totally," used to emphasize that something almost completely matches a certain description, often with an exaggerated tone.

• Structure: 简直 + 是/像...

• Examples:

• 这里的风景简直像一幅画。 - The scenery here is just like a painting.

• 我简直不敢相信！ - I simply can't believe it!

• 他跑得简直像飞一样快。 - He runs as fast as flying.

Exercise:
Use "简直" to complete the sentence.
这道题太难了，我______。