What does "straw" mean?
A dried stalk of a cereal plant.
Straw
/stɹɔ/ adj, name, noun, verb, slang
adj, name, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A dried stalk of a cereal plant.
- Grammar: straw is listed as adj, name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: pale yellow, a continental, a curse, a damn.
- Useful contrasts: black, cup, dark.
- Usage evidence: A man of straw is worth a woman of gold.
How to use "straw"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "straw" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "straw" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "straw" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "straw" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "straw" is acting as adj, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "pale yellow" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "straw", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A dried stalk of a cereal plant. countable
- 2 a thin paper or plastic tube used to suck liquids into the mouth wordnet
- 3 Such dried stalks considered collectively; this bulk matter may be a chief salable product, a by-product, fodder, bedding, or green manure, depending on region and on current market conditions. uncountable
- 4 a variable yellow tint; dull yellow, often diluted with white wordnet
- 5 A drinking straw. countable
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 material consisting of seed coverings and small pieces of stem or leaves that have been separated from the seeds wordnet
- 7 A pale, yellowish beige colour, like that of a dried straw. countable, uncommon, uncountable
- 8 plant fiber used e.g. for making baskets and hats or as fodder wordnet
- 9 Anything proverbially worthless; the least possible thing. countable, figuratively, uncountable
"to not care a straw"
- 10 A straw owner. countable, uncountable
"The Bromfield Street offices were housed in a dilapidated but heavily-insured building, owned by a straw for a wealthy downtown real estate developer, surrounded by expensive new commercial developments, and in a city renowned for arson-for-profit."
Verb
- 1 To lay straw around plants to protect them from frost.
- 2 spread by scattering (‘straw’ is archaic) wordnet
- 3 To sell straws on the streets in order to cover the giving to the purchaser of things usually banned, such as pornography. obsolete, slang
"It was the custom for the disaffected of those days to make known their grievances by distributing papers on doors of public buildings, and even strawing them in the high way, for the benefit of the chance passenger."
- 4 cover or provide with or as if with straw wordnet
Adjective
- 1 Made of straw. not-comparable
"straw hat"
- 2 Of a pale, yellowish beige colour, like that of a dried straw. not-comparable
- 3 Imaginary, but presented as real. figuratively, not-comparable
"A straw enemy built up in the media to seem like a real threat, which then collapses like a balloon."
Adjective
- 1 of a pale yellow color like straw; straw-colored wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname transferred from the nickname.
Synonyms
All synonyms pale yellowa continentala cursea damna darna hoot
Example
"A man of straw is worth a woman of gold."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "straw"?
Common synonyms include: pale yellow, a continental, a curse, a damn, a darn, a hoot.
How do you use "straw" in a sentence?
A man of straw is worth a woman of gold.
How do you pronounce "straw"?
Pronounced /stɹɔ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English straw, from Old English strēaw, from Proto-West Germanic *strau, from Proto-Germanic *strawą (“that which is strewn, straw”), from Proto-Indo-European *strew- (“to spread around, strew”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Sträi (“straw”), West Frisian strie (“straw”), Dutch stro (“straw”), German Low German Stroh (“straw”), German Stroh (“straw”), Danish, Norwegian and Swedish strå (“straw”), Icelandic strá (“straw”), Walloon strin, Albanian shtrohë (“kennel”).
Etymology 2
From Middle English straw, as a nickname for a thin person or one with straw-coloured hair, or an occupational name for a dealer in straw.