straw in the wind

Cultural  

1. A small sign that hints of something that is about to happen: “It is difficult to tell whether the new regime will relax censorship, although a recent remark by the minister of culture may be a straw in the wind.”

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straw in the wind Idioms  

1. A slight hint of the future, as in The public unrest is a straw in the wind indicating future problems for the regime. This expression alludes to a straw showing in what direction the wind blows, an observation also behind the idiom straw vote.

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Example Sentences

So I think that's a straw in the wind, that there's a dissatisfaction.

From Salon • May 27, 2019

He is as straw in the wind, and he will blow away.

From The New Yorker • Jun. 9, 2017

Connecticut’s Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, elected in 2010 with 55% of the vote, is a more suggestive straw in the wind.

From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 9, 2015

OWS may turn out to have been a straw in the wind.

From The Guardian • Mar. 28, 2013

Mother’s zinnias stood sad and brown and rustled like straw in the wind.

From "Miracles on Maple Hill" by Virginia Sorensen