see為「看見」，writing在這裡指「文字」on the wall為「在牆上」的意思。聖經故事中，古巴比倫國王看見神秘的手指在牆上，寫著看不懂的文字，請猶太預言家來看時，發現是「大難臨頭」之意，結果當天亡國。此語常用於新聞報導或文學讀本，指的是「兇兆」。
看看老外聊天時怎麼用writing on the wall：
A You better finish the work before manager come back from Paris，or you will get fired.
B I have seen the writing on the wall.Would you like to give me hand？
A 你最好在經理從巴黎回來之前完成工作，否則你就會被炒魷魚。
B 我已經感受到不好的預兆了。你可以幫我個忙嗎？
writing on the wall例句精選：
I can see the writing on the wall.
預見兇兆。
Bill saw the writing on the wall and resigned his job before he was dismissed.
比爾看到了不祥之兆，因而在被開除以前他辭去了工作。
Fortunately, the company saw the writing on the wall early and took action to avoid losing money.
幸虧公司事先看出了不祥之兆並採取行動避免了經濟損失。
拓展學習和wall有關的習語：
off the wall 毫無根據
His interpretation of the text was completely off the wall.
他對文本的解讀根本毫無根據。
a hole in the wall 平凡的小地方、小餐館
There's this hole in the wall on the edge of town that I go every now and then.
小鎮外圍有家小餐館我偶爾會去。