catch at straws

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It was a faint hope, but drowning men catch at straws.

From Hot corn: Life Scenes in New York Illustrated by Robinson, Solon

One hope I clung to, as the drowning catch at straws.

From Branded by Lynde, Francis

I catch at straws, perhaps, with my unlearned hands, but it's the instinct of affection.

From The Letters of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Volume II by Kenyon, Frederic G. (Frederic George), Sir

Drowning men, as you know, catch at straws; and this is a wise arrangement, for otherwise they would not often be saved by planks.

From Forty Years in the Wilderness of Pills and Powders Cogitations and Confessions of an Aged Physician by Alcott, William A. (William Andrus)

What could possess me to make such a request of such a man I cannot tell; but drowning men catch at straws: they had driven me desperate between them; I hardly knew what I said. 

From The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Brontë, Anne