last straw
noun
: the last of a series (as of events or indignities) that brings one beyond the point of endurance
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Waters has given many interviews in recent years that some fans who support Israel and/or Ukraine have considered a last straw. —
Chris Willman, Variety, 7 Feb. 2023 Critics saw this as a last straw, so their rage only intensified when head coach John Harbaugh stood by his offensive staff in his news conference Monday while acknowledging that the Ravens must throw more efficiently. —Childs Walker, Baltimore Sun, 22 Dec. 2022 Could a loss to an unraveling rival be his last straw at UCLA? —Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 19 Nov. 2021 The matter of their fictional son, a private sick joke that’s not supposed to be brought up with outsiders, is the last straw. —Dallas News, 12 July 2022 For some traders, the recent collapse of the crypto exchange FTX—which is dragging down other firms—was the last straw. —Gunjan Banerji, WSJ, 18 Dec. 2022 The last straw was an apartment fire that killed 10 people last week in Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang region that has been under lockdown for more than three months. —Stephanie Yang, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2022 The last straw was the dismal fourth quarter earnings and investor call. —Richard Torrenzano, Fortune, 30 Nov. 2022 The last straw was when Russian troops began to occupy the apartment complex where her mother lived. —Oleksandr Chubko, New York Times, 8 Nov. 2022 See More
Chris Willman, Variety, 7 Feb. 2023 Critics saw this as a last straw, so their rage only intensified when head coach John Harbaugh stood by his offensive staff in his news conference Monday while acknowledging that the Ravens must throw more efficiently. —Childs Walker, Baltimore Sun, 22 Dec. 2022 Could a loss to an unraveling rival be his last straw at UCLA? —Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 19 Nov. 2021 The matter of their fictional son, a private sick joke that’s not supposed to be brought up with outsiders, is the last straw. —Dallas News, 12 July 2022 For some traders, the recent collapse of the crypto exchange FTX—which is dragging down other firms—was the last straw. —Gunjan Banerji, WSJ, 18 Dec. 2022 The last straw was an apartment fire that killed 10 people last week in Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang region that has been under lockdown for more than three months. —Stephanie Yang, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2022 The last straw was the dismal fourth quarter earnings and investor call. —Richard Torrenzano, Fortune, 30 Nov. 2022 The last straw was when Russian troops began to occupy the apartment complex where her mother lived. —Oleksandr Chubko, New York Times, 8 Nov. 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
from the fable of the last straw that broke the camel's back when added to its burden
First Known Use
1845, in the meaning defined above
Kids Definition
last straw
noun : the last of a series (as of events or troubles) that causes one to give up or lose patience