stray

noun

/stɹeɪ/

Etymology

From Middle English strayen, partly from Old French estraier, from Vulgar Latin via strata, and partly from Middle English strien, streyen, streyȝen (“to spread, scatter”), from Old English strēġan (“to strew”).

inherited from strēġan — “to strew”
derived from strien
derived from via strata
derived from estraier
inherited from strayen

Definitions

Any domestic animal that lacks an enclosure, proper place, or company, but that instead…
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.
- But vvhat a vvretched, and diſconſolate Hermitage is that Houſe, vvhich is not viſited by thee [God], and vvhat a VVayue, and Stray is that Man, that hath not thy Markes vpon him?
An act of wandering off or going astray.
›+ 12 more definitionsshow fewer
1. An area of common land for use by domestic animals.
2. 5
  An article of movable property, of which the owner is not known (see waif).
  - waifs and strays
3. 6
  An instance of atmospheric interference.
  - Because of their shortness, such signals are usually easy to distinguish from the bomb returns but, when such a stray is recorded just before the bomb return, too close to be distinguished by ear […]
  - Electromagnetic interference EMI, radio interference RI, television interference TVI, and radio frequency interference RFI, can all be described as a confusion to received radio signals due to strays and undesirable signals.
4. A casual or offhand insult.
5. A submissive that has not committed to submit to any particular dominant, particulary in…
  A submissive that has not committed to submit to any particular dominant, particulary in petplay.
6. 9
  Ellipsis of stray bullet.
  - catch a stray
  - Hit by a stray, but I pray that there's a hood in heaven
7. 10
  To wander, as from a direct course
  To wander, as from a direct course; to deviate, or go out of the way.
  - Thames among the wanton valleys strays.
8. To wander from company or outside proper limits
  To wander from company or outside proper limits; to rove or roam at large; to go astray.
9. To wander from the path of duty or rectitude
  To wander from the path of duty or rectitude; to err.
10. 13
  To cause to stray
  To cause to stray; lead astray.
  - Hath not else his eye / Strayed his affection in unlawful love,
  - To ease myself I was compelled to leave my basket behind me, trusting to return and find it, if I should ever reach safety and discover on what pathless hill I had been strayed.
11. 14
  Having gone astray
  Having gone astray; strayed; wandering.
  - The alley is full of stray cats rummaging through the garbage.
  - The organisation fills many gaps left by the state, operating a dizzying array of services, including homes for victims of domestic violence, food banks and a shelter for stray animals.
12. 15
  In the wrong place
  In the wrong place; misplaced.
  - a stray comma
  - a stray bullet

The neighborhood

neighborastray
neighborestray

Derived

catch a stray, strayer, unstraying, nonstray, stray bullet, stray dog, straylight, stray line, strayling, stray mark

Vish — recursive loop

A definitional loop anchored at stray. Each word in the ring is defined by the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself. Scroll to it and watch.

A definitional loop anchored at stray. Each word in the ring appears in the definition of the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself.

9 hops · closes at stray

curated · pre-corpus. live cycle detection across the full graph is the next major milestone.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA