A drop in the bucket" is a something that is not important because it is very small. Example: "I'm sorry I scratched your car." Reply: "Don't worry about it. It's just a drop in the bucket. That car has more scratches on it than I can count." There are so many "drops" in a "bucket" of water that we could not count them all, so any one drop is really not that important. Example: "When I think how many people there are in the world, I realize that my own problems are just a drop in the bucket." "A drop" is very small amount when compared with all there is "in the bucket." "A drop in the bucket" is not important because it is a tiny amount when compared to the larger whole. Example: "I'd like to do something to change the world, but whatever I do seems like a drop in the bucket."