| 释义 |
grasping at straws
grasping at strawsIn such a desperate situation that you will try even the most unhopeful way of solving it; from the idea of a drowning person trying to gain a hold on anything at all, however flimsy.grasping at straws
grasp at strawsTo make a desperate attempt to salvage a bad situation. A: "But what about all those times I took the trash out when you hadn't even asked me to?" B: "That has nothing to do with why you're in trouble now, so stop grasping at straws."See also: grasp, strawgrasping at strawsFig. to depend on something that is useless; to make a futile attempt at something. John couldn't answer the teacher's question. He was just grasping at straws. There I was, grasping at straws, with no one to help me.See also: grasping, strawgrasp at strawsAlso, clutch at straws. Make a desperate attempt at saving oneself. For example, He had lost the argument, but he kept grasping at straws, naming numerous previous cases that had little to do with this one . This metaphoric expression alludes to a drowning person trying to save himself by grabbing at flimsy reeds. First recorded in 1534, the term was used figuratively by the late 1600s. See also: grasp, strawEncyclopediaSeestrawMedicalSeeStrawLegalSeeStraw ManFinancialSeestraw man |