stray

Meaning

Noun

1. Any domestic animal that lacks an enclosure, proper place, or company, but that instead wanders at large or is lost; an estray.
2. A person who is lost, either literally or figuratively.
3. An act of wandering off or going astray.
4. (historical) An area of common land for use by domestic animals.
5. (British, archaic) An article of movable property, of which the owner is not known (see waif).
6. An instance of atmospheric interference.
7. (slang) A casual or offhand insult.
8. A submissive that has not committed to submit to any particular dominant.
9. (abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis) Ellipsis of stray bullet.

Verb

1. (intransitive) To wander, as from a direct course; to deviate, or go out of the way.
2. (intransitive) To wander from company or outside proper limits; to rove or roam at large; to go astray.
3. (intransitive) To wander from the path of duty or rectitude; to err.
4. (transitive) To cause to stray; lead astray.

Adj

1. (not-comparable) Having gone astray; strayed; wandering
2. (not-comparable) In the wrong place; misplaced.

Opposite of

collared

Synonyms

wander

roam

rove

lost

digress

go astray

deviate

drift

err

vagabond

range

lose one’s way

get lost

homeless

tramp

waif

straggle

isolated

random

ownerless

swan

🦢

casual

ramble

accidental

aberrate

abandoned

stray away

be lost

travel with hazard

wandering

deflect

wild

wander away

swerve

vagrant

roll

adventitious

veer

aberrant

chance

🎲

loose

divagate

fortuitous

cast

deviating

deviated

call in

detached

call

deserted

Translations

errer

errar

vaguer

vagar

errar

irren

vagabundear

vagar

⌚

égaré

vagabundear

dwalen

vagare

zwerven

vadiar

streunen

Pronounced as (IPA)

/stɹeɪ/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: stray

Inherited from Middle English: strayen

Inherited from Old English: strēġan

In summary

From Middle English stray, strey, from Anglo-Norman estray, stray, Old French estrai, from the verb (see below).