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Added 9 October 2026

stray

/stɹeɪ/ noun

In Latin: pālor Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about stray at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Any domestic animal that lacks an enclosure, proper place, or company, but that instead wanders at large or is lost; an estray.
A person who is lost.
An act of wandering off or going astray.

verb

To wander, as from a direct course; to deviate, or go out of the way.
To wander from company or outside proper limits; to rove or roam at large; to go astray.
To wander from the path of duty or rectitude; to err.

adjective

Having gone astray; strayed; wandering.
The alley is full of stray cats rummaging through the garbage.
In the wrong place; misplaced.
a stray comma

Origin

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

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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