What Is the 'Straw That Broke the Camel's Back'?

What Is the 'Straw That Broke the Camel's Back'?

And now Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning¹ English.

In life, things can get tough. Sometimes, it is good not to let things bother us. Letting things roll off our backs is a good life skill. When things roll off our backs, they are out of our minds. They no longer bother us.

But, let's face it ... sometimes, things do bother us. Sometimes in life, we are pushed to our limit.

So, on today's program, we talk about those times when we have had enough!

We have a couple of expressions that help us describe that state of mind. They involve the word straw.

First, let's define² straw. Straw is the dry stem³ of plants like wheat or other grains. TheHayManager.com says, "Straw is yellow or golden colored and is a byproduct of the grain harvest."

In other words, it is a waste product of wheat. But it has many uses.

In a garden, you can use straw on top of soil to keep it from drying out. Straw can also keep weeds from growing.

Straw, especially dry straw, is not very nutritious⁴. But because it is hollow⁵, straw makes excellent bedding for animals. Horses, cows, goats, and camels may enjoy a good night's sleep on a straw bed.

Animals not only sleep on straw. Some may also have to carry bales of straw on their backs.

And that brings us to this expression: the straw that broke the camel's back.

Merriam-Webster dictionary says the expression means "the last in a series of bad things that happen to make someone very upset, angry, ..." or some other bad feeling.

The straw that broke the camel's back was one straw too many. With that piece added to the camel's back, the load became too heavy to bear. In other words, it is the last thing to happen that makes you give up on something.

Here is an example: Let's say I have a friend who constantly lets me down. When he says he is going to do something, he never does it. And he always promises next time will be different.

Well, one day I told him I was going out of town for two days and needed someone to feed my cat. He offered to help. I was not so sure. But he promised that he would take care of my cat Meepers. I believed him and left my cat in his care. Well, guess what? He forgot to feed her! She went two whole days without food! Luckily, Meepers is a very fat cat. But still, that was unforgivable.

It was the straw that broke the camel's back. I am never trusting him again.

We have a similar straw expression but without the camel.

The last straw is the last thing that pushes you to some sort of limit. You cannot take a situation anymore because of that last straw.

Here's another example: Earlier this year, I joined a local yoga studio. It was very close to my home. So, that was good. But other things about the studio were not. It was very small. So, when I did yoga positions, I would often get hit by other people. That bothered me. Also, the teacher talked too much about modern philosophy during the class. That got on my nerves⁶. But then she raised the cost of her classes. The price almost doubled!

That was the last straw. I decided⁷ just to do yoga at home with a YouTube instructor⁸. I save money. And if the instructor talks too much, I can just turn down the sound.

And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories.

Don't forget to practice using last straw or the straw that broke the camel's back.

Words in This Story

by-product⁹ – n. a product or result produced in addition to the main product or result

hollow – adj. an unfilled space

bale – n. a large bundle¹⁰ of goods tightly¹¹ tied for storing or shipping¹²

yoga – n. a system of exercises for gaining bodily or mental control and well-being¹³

studio – n. a place for the study of something

1 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

2 define   

vt.解释，下定义，阐述，限定，规定

参考例句：

• Please define the words.请解释这些字的意义。
• It's hard to define exactly what has changed.很难解释清楚到底发生了什么变化。

3 stem   

n.茎，干，船首，词干，血统；vt.堵住，阻止，抽去梗；vi.起源于，发生

参考例句：

• Cut the stem cleanly,just beneath a leaf joint.把茎切整齐点，正好切在叶根下。
• The ship was in a blaze from stem to stern.整艘船从头到尾都着火了。

4 nutritious   

adj.有营养的，营养价值高的

参考例句：

• Fresh vegetables are very nutritious.新鲜蔬菜富于营养。
• Hummingbirds have discovered that nectar and pollen are very nutritious.蜂鸟发现花蜜和花粉是很有营养的。

5 hollow   

adj.空的，中空的，空心的；空洞的，无价值的

参考例句：

• The boys scraped out a hollow place for planting trees.那些孩子挖了个坑准备栽树。
• Bamboo is a sort of hollow plant.竹子是一种中空的植物。

6 nerves   

n.神经紧张 vt.鼓起勇气

参考例句：

• What he said at the meeting strung her nerves up. 他在会议上的发言使她的神经很紧张。
• At the end of a day's teaching, her nerves were absolutely shattered. 教了一天课，她精疲力竭。

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 instructor   

n.指导者，教员，教练

参考例句：

• The college jumped him from instructor to full professor.大学突然把他从讲师提升为正教授。
• The skiing instructor was a tall,sunburnt man.滑雪教练是一个高高个子晒得黑黑的男子。

9 by-product   

n.副产品，附带产生的结果

参考例句：

• Freedom is the by-product of economic surplus.自由是经济盈余的副产品。
• The raw material for the tyre is a by-product of petrol refining.制造轮胎的原材料是提炼汽油时产生的一种副产品。

10 bundle   

n.捆，包，束；一堆，一批；v.把…扎成一捆

参考例句：

• My uncle sent me a large bundle on my birthday.我生日时叔父给我寄来一个大包裹。
• Dad found a bundle of spelling mistakes in my composition.爸爸在我作文里找出一大堆拼写错误。

11 tightly   

adv.紧紧地，坚固地，牢固地

参考例句：

• My child holds onto my hand tightly while we cross the street.横穿马路时，孩子紧拉着我的手不放。
• The crowd pressed together so tightly that we could hardly breathe.人群挤在一起，我们几乎喘不过气来。

12 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

13 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。