storm和tea-cup似乎是两个很难联系起来的概念。storm是发生在广阔的天空中的自然现象，tea-cup只是一个小小的容器。在这样一个小巧的器皿里何以能起得了大风暴的呢？如果谁说他看见茶杯里起风暴的话，他看见的大概只是茶匙搅起的一个小漩涡吧!可以想见，所谓a storm in a tea-cup就是把一件小事不恰当地加以夸大，也就是“小题大做”：

What the baby has is only a slight stomach disorder, but his parents are stirring up a storm in a tea-cup by taking him to the best hospital to consult the best pediatrician.
那小毛头只不过是肠胃稍有不适而已，但他的爸妈却小题大做，把全带到最好的医院去看最好的儿科医生。

The students regard all the measures taken by the school authorities to prevent cheating during exams as nothing but a storm in a tea-cup.
学生认为校方为防止考试时作弊所采取的措施是小题大做。