I. ˈstrā noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French estraié, past participle of estraier
Date: 13th century
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
II. intransitive verb
Etymology: Middle English straien, from Anglo-French estraier, from Vulgar Latin * extravagare, from Latin extra- outside + vagari to wander — more at extra-
Date: 14th century
: wander : 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 stray ing absently around the room
e. : to become distracted from an argument or chain of thought
stray ed from the point
f. : to wander accidentally from a fixed or chosen route
g. : err , sin
• stray·er noun
III. adjective
Date: 1589
1. : having strayed or escaped from a proper or intended place
a stray dog
hit by a stray bullet
fixed a few stray hairs
2. : occurring at random or sporadically
a few stray thoughts
3. : not serving any useful purpose : unwanted
stray light