Skip to content

stray

/stɹeɪ/noun, verb, adjective1 syllable

Stray means: move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment.

Synonyms for stray17

verb, as in move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment

roll, wander, swan, tramp, roam, cast, ramble, rove, range, drift, vagabond, err

verb, as in wander from a direct course or at random

err, drift, roll, wander, swan, tramp, roam, cast, ramble, rove, range, vagabond

verb, as in lose clarity or turn aside especially from the main subject of attention or course of argument in writing, thinking, or speaking

digress, divagate, wander

adjective, as in not close together in time

isolated, sporadic

adjective, as in (of an animal) having no home or having wandered away from home

lost

What does stray mean?6

verb

1

move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment“The gypsies roamed the woods”

2

wander from a direct course or at random“The child strayed from the path and her parents lost sight of her”

3

lose clarity or turn aside especially from the main subject of attention or course of argument in writing, thinking, or speaking“She always digresses when telling a story”

adjective

1

not close together in time“isolated instances of rebellion”

2

(of an animal) having no home or having wandered away from home“a stray calf”

noun

1

an animal that has strayed (especially a domestic animal)

Definitions from the Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

What rhymes with stray?60

three syllables

usadna
Show 40 near rhymes
makemadetakegreatsamestategameplacedaysnamecasechangestatesbasedcamemakesfacegameswaitlateagegavemainplayedspacedatebreaktakesbecameratesavepagepaidrangetradehatejamesstageracechanged

All 60 rhymes for stray, grouped by syllable

Stray in a sentence

  • He is, as it were, a stray sheep.unknown
  • The stray dog had heartworms, mange, intestinal worms, and a broken leg.sangelo
  • If you feed stray cats, they'll keep coming back.CK
  • Laika was a small, stray mongrel picked up from the street.Hybrid
  • A skunk ate the food we left out for the stray cats.shekitten
  • There are a lot of stray cats in this area.CK
  • The stray dog suddenly came at the child.unknown
  • A stray dog bit me on the street and gave me rabies.felidad

Sentences from Tatoeba, CC BY 2.0 FR, credited to their authors.

Forms of stray

as a noun

plural
strays

as a verb

past tense
strayed
present participle
straying
third-person singular
strays
past participle
strayed

as a adjective

comparative
strayer
superlative
strayest