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last straw

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noun
  1. the last of a succession of irritations, incidents, remarks, etc., that leads to a loss of patience, a disaster, etc.: He has been late before, but this is the last straw.
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Origin of last straw

First recorded in 1840–50; after the proverb “It is the last straw that breaks the camel's back”
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

affrontindignitylimitoverloadprovocation

Examples from the Web for last straw

Historical Examples

  • Did we waste time talking about it, discussing our chances, or mildly anathematising our last-straw luck?

    Notes of a Camp-Follower on the Western Front

    E. W. Hornung

  • With a last-straw expression Mrs. Wyburn drew herself up to her full height.

    The Limit

    Ada Leverson

British Dictionary definitions for last straw

last straw

noun
  1. the last straw the final irritation or problem that stretches one's endurance or patience beyond the limit
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Word Origin

from the proverb, "It is the last straw that breaks the camel's back"
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012