straw

[ straw ]

noun

1. a single stalk or stem, especially of certain species of grain, chiefly wheat, rye, oats, and barley.
2. a mass of such stalks, especially after drying and threshing, used as fodder.
3. material, fibers, etc., made from such stalks, as used for making hats or baskets.
4. the negligible value of one such stalk; trifle; least bit:

   not to care a straw.

5. a tube, usually of paper or glass, for sucking up a beverage from a container:

   to sip lemonade through a straw.

6. anything of possible but dubious help in a desperate circumstance.
7. straw man ( def 2 ).
8. a straw hat.

adjective

1. of, pertaining to, containing, or made of straw:

   a straw hat.

2. of the color of straw; pale yellow.
3. of little value or consequence; worthless.
4. sham; fictitious.

straw

¹

/ strɔː /

verb

1. See strew
   archaic.
   another word for strew

Straw

²

/ strɔː /

noun

1. StrawJack1946MBritishPOLITICS: politicianPOLITICS: statesman Jack, full name John Whitaker Straw. born 1946, British Labour politician; Home Secretary (1997–2001); Foreign Secretary (2001–06); Lord Chancellor (2007–10)

straw

³

/ strɔː /

noun

1. 1. stalks of threshed grain, esp of wheat, rye, oats, or barley, used in plaiting hats, baskets, etc, or as fodder
   2. ( as modifier )

      a straw hat

2. a single dry or ripened stalk, esp of a grass
3. a long thin hollow paper or plastic tube or stem of a plant, used for sucking up liquids into the mouth
4. usually used with a negative anything of little value or importance

   I wouldn't give a straw for our chances

5. a measure or remedy that one turns to in desperation (esp in the phrases clutch or grasp at a straw or straws )
6. 1. a pale yellow colour
   2. ( as adjective )

      straw hair

7. straw in the wind
   straw in the wind a hint or indication
8. the last straw
   the last straw a small incident, setback, etc that, coming after others, proves intolerable

adjective

1. having little value or substance

Derived Forms

• ˈstrawˌlike, adjective

Other Words From

• strawless adjective
• strawlike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of straw¹

before 950; Middle English; Old English strēaw; cognate with German Stroh; akin to strew

Word History and Origins

Origin of straw¹

Old English streaw; related to Old Norse strā, Old Frisian strē, Old High German strō; see strew

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. catch / clutch / grasp at a straw / straws / any straw(s), to seize at any chance, no matter how slight, of saving oneself from calamity.
2. draw straws, to decide by lottery using straws or strawlike items of different lengths, usually with the short straw or straws determining the person chosen or the loser.

More idioms and phrases containing straw

• draw straws
• grasp at straws
• last straw
• make bricks without straw
• not worth a dime (straw)

Example Sentences

For years, the top complaint about the product was that people lost the little red straw that came with each can.

From Popular-Science

They’re like high-end veggie straws you get in the snack aisle.

From Outside Online

For a surface with boundary, such as a straw with its two boundary circles, each cut must begin and end on a boundary.

From Quanta Magazine

She was a tough act to follow, and the guy who drew the short straw was Garth Brooks.

From Time

Such defiance from the tech giants was a final straw for Museveni.

From Quartz

Most of it is taken up by a graphic inviting the visitor to participate in the 2016 online presidential straw poll.

From The Daily Beast

Exactly one month after the first straw goat was erected in Gävle, it was mysteriously burned to a crisp.

From The Daily Beast

I thanked him, sat down on the sofa, and sipped it through the straw.

From The Daily Beast

Hana seeks refuge from the buzzing lights of Otome Road in a nearby café and makes another swirl with her straw.

From The Daily Beast

She slowly moves her straw through the whipped cream in her designer latte and looks up.

From The Daily Beast

Poor Squinty ran and tried to hide under the straw, for he knew the boy was talking about him.

From Project Gutenberg

He reached up for her big, rough straw hat that hung on a peg outside the door, and put it on her head.

From Project Gutenberg

In fact, so much of her smooth brow as could be seen under a broad-brimmed straw hat was wrinkled in a decided frown.

From Project Gutenberg

He put on his big straw hat, and taking his umbrella from the stand in the hall, followed the lady in black, never overtaking her.

From Project Gutenberg

The clear, straw-colored fluid which is left after separation of the coagulum is called blood-serum.

From Project Gutenberg