The last straw is the final problem in a long series, the one that makes you lose your patience. After it, a person snaps, leaves or makes a decision. The straw here has nothing to do with clutching at straws, grabbing at a last hope. There's also a longer version with the same meaning: the straw that broke the camel's back.
When would you say the last straw?
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be the last straw; the final straw; the last straw was + noun/-ing; the straw that broke the camel's back
- My flatmate never washed his dishes, and when he ate my birthday cake, that was the last straw.
- The train was late every day this week, but today's cancellation was the final straw.
What changed
First versionHe was late for every meeting, and missing the client call was the last drop.
RevisionHe was late for every meeting, and missing the client call was the last straw.
The last drop is a literal translation of an image used in some other languages, where it's a drop that makes the cup overflow. An English speaker will take it literally: the last drop of something, such as water in a bottle. In English the image is a straw, not a drop. Only drop was replaced with straw.
There's also the final straw, with the same meaning. The full form with the camel is less common and sounds more elaborate: The extra homework was the straw that broke the camel's back. To clutch at straws is about a last hope, not about losing your patience.
Your turn
My neighbours had loud parties every weekend, and when they started one at 3 a.m. on a Tuesday, it was ___.
Show the answer
the last straw — The neighbours had been noisy for a long time, and a party at 3 a.m. on a Tuesday made the speaker lose patience, so it was the last straw. The last drop is a literal translation, and native speakers don't say it about patience.
Describe a time you ran out of patience. Say what had been annoying you before and what was the last straw.
My old phone kept freezing for months, and when it died during an important video call, that was the last straw, so I bought a new one.
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