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straw `noun` [ strɔː ]

• dried stalks of grain, used especially as fodder or as material for thatching, packing, or weaving.

• "a straw hat"

• a thin hollow tube of paper or plastic for sucking drink from a glass or bottle.

Origin: Old English strēaw, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch stroo and German Stroh, also to strew.

man of straw

• a person regarded as having no substance or integrity.

• "a leader who was once derided as a man of straw"

• a person undertaking a financial commitment without adequate means.

clutch at straws

• be in such a desperate situation as to resort to even the most unlikely means of salvation.

draw the short straw

• be the unluckiest of a group of people, especially in being chosen to perform an unpleasant task.

draw straws

• draw lots.

the last straw

• a further difficulty or annoyance, typically minor in itself but coming on top of a series of difficulties, that makes a situation unbearable.
"his affair was the last straw"

not care two straws

• not have the slightest concern about.
"he is in no hurry, and does not care two straws where he is going"

a straw in the wind

• a slight hint of future developments.

straw noun [ strɔː ]