stray

1 of 3

noun

ˈstrā 

1

a

: a domestic animal that is wandering at large or is lost

b

: a person or thing that strays

2

[Middle English, from straien to stray] archaic : the act of going astray

stray

2 of 3

verb

strayed; straying; strays

intransitive verb

: wander: such as

a

: to wander from company, restraint, or proper limits

b

: to roam about without fixed direction or purpose

c

: to move in a winding course : meander

d

: to move without conscious or intentional effort

eyes straying absently around the room

e

: to become distracted from an argument or train of thought

strayed from the point

f

: to wander accidentally from a fixed or chosen route

g

: err, sin

strayer noun

stray

3 of 3

adjective

1

: having strayed or escaped from a proper or intended place

a stray dog

2

: occurring at random or sporadically

stray thoughts

3

: not serving any useful purpose : unwanted

stray light

Synonyms

Verb

• err
• fall
• offend
• sin
• transgress
• trespass
• wander

Adjective

• aimless
• arbitrary
• catch-as-catch-can
• desultory
• erratic
• haphazard
• helter-skelter
• hit-or-miss
• random
• scattered
• slapdash

Examples of stray in a Sentence

Noun

Both of her cats were strays that she found wandering in the neighborhood.

Verb

The airplane strayed off course.

our straying son swears he's returned to the straight and narrow

Adjective

stray sightings of UFO's, none of which have been rigorously analyzed by scientists

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

He had been found as a stray and taken to a shelter, where no one claimed him. —Simone Jasper, Miami Herald, 12 June 2025

The caption alongside the footage explains that the cat was rescued as a stray at around 6 weeks old, and the puppy joined the household at 8 weeks old to be trained as a service dog. —Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 June 2025

Verb

The narrators of these songs don’t worry about betraying an oath or straying from a traditional role; friends and family figure only as concerned characters wondering whether their newly single buddy is okay. —Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 20 June 2025

In the sixth, Alonso strayed too far off first on Jeff McNeil’s lineout to short — the only one of the outs that Mendoza referred to as a mistake. —Tim Britton, New York Times, 18 June 2025

Adjective

Alcaraz duly escaped the adversity, but not without a time violation and a funny moment of tension when someone in the crowd returned a stray ball between the Spaniard’s first and second serves. —James Hansen, New York Times, 22 June 2025

Police said 11-year-old Willow James was struck in the head by a stray bullet May 28 while riding home from school in a vehicle with her father and cousin in the 15800 block of Paulina Avenue. —Mike Nolan, Chicago Tribune, 17 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French estraié, past participle of estraier

Verb

Middle English straien, from Anglo-French estraier, from Vulgar Latin *extravagare, from Latin extra- outside + vagari to wander — more at extra-

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1589, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for stray

• ay
• bay
• bey
• brae
• cay
• chez
• dey
• dray
• fay
• fey
• flay
• fray

Kids Definition

stray

1 of 3 noun

ˈstrā 

1

: a domestic animal that is wandering loose or is lost

2

: a person or thing that strays

stray

2 of 3 verb

1

: to wander from a group or from the proper place : roam

the dog strayed from the yard

2

: to wander from a fixed or chosen route or at random

accidentally strayed off the path

3

: to become distracted from an argument or chain of thought

strayed from the point

strayer noun

stray

3 of 3 adjective

1

: having strayed or been lost

a stray dog

2

: occurring in one place and another or at random

a few stray hairs