an animal that has strayed (especially a domestic animal)
Used in a Sentence
stray
How to use stray in a sentence. Example sentences and definitions for stray.
Editorial note
Use earnings to create more collars, attaching them to stray dogs3.
Examples13
Definitions6
Parts of speech3
Quick take
an animal that has strayed (especially a domestic animal)
Meaning at a glance
The clearest senses and uses of stray gathered in one view.
move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment; "The gypsies roamed the woods"; "roving vagabonds"; "the wandering Jew"; "The cattle roam across the prairie"; "the laborers drift from one town to the next"; "They rolled from town to town"
wander from a direct course or at random; "The child strayed from the path and her parents lost sight of her"; "don't drift from the set course"
Definitions
Core meanings and parts of speech for stray.
noun
an animal that has strayed (especially a domestic animal)
verb
move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment; "The gypsies roamed the woods"; "roving vagabonds"; "the wandering Jew"; "The cattle roam across the prairie"; "the laborers drift from one town to the next"; "They rolled from town to town"
verb
wander from a direct course or at random; "The child strayed from the path and her parents lost sight of her"; "don't drift from the set course"
verb
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"; "her mind wanders"; "Don't digress when you give a lecture"
adjective
not close together in time; "isolated instances of rebellion"; "a few stray crumbs"
See also: isolated
adjective
(of an animal) having no home or having wandered away from home; "a stray calf"; "a stray dog"
Example sentences
Use earnings to create more collars, attaching them to stray dogs3.
You are responding to a stray Apple fanboy who spelled "come on" as "common.
Sorry to be "that guy" but "dog days" has nothing to do with a summertime culling of stray dogs.
As I reached about half way through the article I got bored and my mind starting having stray thoughts- god this is long.
Doesn't really stray too far from the previous design really, it feels cleaner and a lot more modern.
The role of the Chair is to ensure that the meeting proceeds according to the rules and doesn't stray from the agenda.
But consider, when this is something that contains your flight plan, your maps, and so on, the cost of a stray gamma ray blowing away a byte.
And then there is inertia, and you tend to fight the framework once you stray from the exact approved way in which it's supposed to be used.
I was able to stay in this middle, peaceful area for an extremely long time before random stray fire eventually finished me off.
I have a very strict schedule I stick to after work, because if I stray from it I have an extraordinarily difficult time sleeping.
In the all-too-common cases where elephants are killed illegally, any stray documentary crews would also be killed, with all the bodies left to rot.
Linux would probably do better because few people have any reason to stray outside their distribution's repositories.
And although there will be occasional disagreements on the details of various legislative proposals, I won't stray from that principle - and it will be reflected in the platform.
Frequently asked questions
Short answers drawn from the clearest meanings and examples for this word.
How do you use stray in a sentence?
Use earnings to create more collars, attaching them to stray dogs3.
What does stray mean?
an animal that has strayed (especially a domestic animal)
What part of speech is stray?
stray is commonly used as noun, verb, adjective.