The Straw that Broke the Camel's Back

Question

Was watching a show the other day that was in Spanish with sporadic English subtitles. At one point the subtitles said: "The Straw that Broke the Camel's Back", but the Spanish phrase used was completely different. I didn't catch it all, it was something about "gotas" doing something in or to "el vaso". Does anyone know what the phrase might have been? Obviously some sort of idiomatic expression, possibly Mexican in origin.

Answer 1

In Mexico the expression is "la gota que derramó el vaso". I believe Carlos F from Chile told me that it is "la gota que colmó el vaso" in his neck of the woods.

I have a memory that it is in the Phrasebook, so you can also check there. (Go to "more" at the top of the page and you will see "Phrasebook" as a selection.)

Answer 2

Hope you get good answers to that, it is one of my favorite expressions and I was wondering about it myself!

What I found was:

ser la gota que coma el vaso.

and

Fue la gota que coma el vaso.

But in the SD phrase book it is

Es la gota que rebasó el vaso

Answer 3

The only one I know is "eso es el colmo" = that's the last straw. I'll keep an eye on this one. Yours is something about drops and a glass, so it makes sense.