He saw the writing on the wall for the British car industry several years ago.他于几年以前就看到了英国汽车工业的不祥之兆。No one told him he was going to be fired, but he could see the writing on the wall.没有人跟他说他将被解雇，但他能看出一点儿苗头。The increase in electricity prices is the writing on the wall for many small businesses.电费的提高对许多小企业来说是个不祥之兆。