The last straw

Posted by David FG on May 04, 2005

In Reply to: The last straw posted by Monica on May 04, 2005

: What does the phrase mean - "that last mistake was the straw that broke the camel's back?"

It derives, I believe, from a proverbial story, in which a camel was increasingly laden - finally it was a mere straw which proved too much for the poor beast to bear, and it broke its back.

It has come to mean that in many cases, it will something seemingly very minor which proves too much to tolerate.

DFG

• Final Straw Lewis 05/May/05