在英语里，the writing's on the wall 可以用来比喻不好的事情即将发生。比如，有人要被裁员了、公司要倒闭了等倒霉的事情。

例句

Susie saw the writing on the wall and decided to quit before her company was taken over by the administrators.

I should have seen the writing on the wall when I bought my house. It's falling apart and now I have to spend a fortune renovating it.

请注意

在美式英语中，人们常说 the handwriting's on the wall, 意思与 the writing's on the wall 相同。