straw (redirected from draws the short straw)

straw  (strô)

n.

1.

a. Stalks of threshed grain, used as bedding and food for animals, for thatching, and for weaving or braiding, as into baskets.

b. A single stalk of threshed grain.

2. Something, such as a hat or basket, made of straw.

3. A slender tube used for sucking up a liquid.

4.

a. Something of minimal value or importance.

b. Something with too little substance to provide support in a crisis: Near the end we were grasping at straws.

adj.

1. Of, relating to, or made of straw: a straw mat.

2. Containing or used for straw, as a barn or feeding trough.

3. Of the color of straw; yellowish.

4. Having little or no value or substance; unimportant.

5. Of, relating to, or constituting a straw man.

Idioms:

final/last straw

The final annoyance or setback, which even though minor makes one lose patience.

straw in the wind

A slight hint of something to come.

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[Middle English, from Old English straw; see ster-² in Indo-European roots.]

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strawy adj.

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straw

Noun

1. dried stalks of threshed grain, such as wheat or barley

2. a single stalk of straw

3. a long thin hollow paper or plastic tube, used for sucking up liquids into the mouth

4. clutch at straws to turn in desperation to something with little chance of success

5. draw the short straw to be the person chosen to perform an unpleasant task

Adjective

made of straw: straw baskets [Old English strēaw]

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	straw - plant fiber used e.g. for making baskets and hats or as fodder cushioning, padding - artifact consisting of soft or resilient material used to fill or give shape or protect or add comfort plant fiber, plant fibre - fiber derived from plants
	2.	straw - material consisting of seed coverings and small pieces of stem or leaves that have been separated from the seeds chaff, husk, shuck, stalk, stubble bran - broken husks of the seeds of cereal grains that are separated from the flour by sifting plant material, plant substance - material derived from plants
	3.	straw - a variable yellow tint; dull yellow, often diluted with white pale yellow, wheat yellow, yellowness - yellow color or pigment; the chromatic color resembling the hue of sunflowers or ripe lemons
	4.	straw - a thin paper or plastic tube used to suck liquids into the mouth drinking straw tube, tubing - conduit consisting of a long hollow object (usually cylindrical) used to hold and conduct objects or liquids or gases
Verb	1.	straw - cover or provide with or as if with straw; "cows were strawed to weather the snowstorm" cover - provide with a covering or cause to be covered; "cover her face with a handkerchief"; "cover the child with a blanket"; "cover the grave with flowers"
	2.	straw - spread by scattering ("straw" is archaic); "strew toys all over the carpet" strew bestrew - cover by strewing litter - make a place messy by strewing garbage around spread, distribute - distribute or disperse widely; "The invaders spread their language all over the country"
Adj.	1.	straw - of a pale yellow color like straw; straw-colored chromatic - being or having or characterized by hue

Translations

straw [strɔː] n → paja;

(drinking straw) → caña, pajita;

that's the last straw! → ¡eso es el colmo!

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straw [strɔː] n → paille f;

that's the last straw! → ça c'est le comble!

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straw [strɔː] n → Stroh nt;

(also: drinking straw) → Strohhalm m;

that's the last straw! → das ist der Gipfel!

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straw [strɔː] n → paglia (= drinking straw); cannuccia;

that's the last straw! → è la goccia che fa traboccare il vaso!