■ noun a homeless and helpless person, especially a neglected or abandoned child.
↘a person who appears thin or poorly nourished.
Derivatives
~ish adjective
~like adjective
Word History
Waif comes from Old Northern French gaif , which was probably from a Scandinavian root meaning 'something loose or wandering'. In medieval English it was a legal term used in the phrase ~ and stray to refer to an unclaimed item of property or a stray animal. By the late 18th century ~ had assumed its modern meaning. The verb waive is related to ~ : it comes from Old French gaiver 'allow to become a ~, abandon', and was originally a legal term.