stranger

1 of 3

noun

strang·​er ˈstrān-jər How to pronounce stranger (audio)
1
: one who is strange: such as
a(1)
(2)
: a resident alien
b
: one in the house of another as a guest, visitor, or intruder
c
: a person or thing that is unknown or with whom one is unacquainted
d
: one who does not belong to or is kept from the activities of a group
e
: one not privy or party to an act, contract, or title : one that interferes without right
2
: one ignorant of or unacquainted with someone or something

stranger

2 of 3

adjective

: of, relating to, or being a stranger : foreign

stranger

3 of 3

verb

strangered; strangering; strangers

Examples of stranger in a Sentence

Noun Children are taught not to talk to strangers. He is a complete stranger to me. “Excuse me. Do you know where the library is?” “I'm sorry. I'm a stranger here myself.” I'm a stranger to the area.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Related Articles Miss Manners: A stranger at the restaurant tried to use me to teach manners to her kids Engage the services of a nutritionist who can design an eating plan for you. Harriette Cole, The Mercury News, 14 Mar. 2024 That means potentially paying a hefty price to have a heated emotional exchange within earshot of strangers. The Indianapolis Star, 14 Mar. 2024 She’d been taught to be afraid of strangers who might want to kidnap her, not adults in positions of authority who increasingly tested her boundaries. Carolyn Van Houten, Washington Post, 14 Mar. 2024 Moments later, the suspect can be seen hurling the flaming cans at a group of strangers on the platform. Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, Fox News, 14 Mar. 2024 The pope's ambassador to the United States, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, who researches candidates and prepares files on his top three recommendations for the Vatican's Congregation of Bishops, is not a stranger to Milwaukee, Avella said. Sophie Carson, Journal Sentinel, 12 Mar. 2024 At the age of 96, Wally was still the disappointed child, whose dad was a stranger to him. Erik Himmelsbach-Weinstein, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2024 The film, which follows a mysterious stranger who provides hope for survival to the denizens on a distant moon amid threats by the armies of a tyrannical ruling force, is the first in a two-part saga. Carly Thomas, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Mar. 2024 Furthermore, iPhone users might have overlooked one basic setting on their device that really could broadcast their identity to complete strangers. John Tufts, The Indianapolis Star, 6 Mar. 2024
Adjective
Among the stranger items sold at the store through the years, according to Myers: Benches from dugouts. Erin Couch, The Enquirer, 28 Jan. 2024 This year, the most exciting books avoid these ho-hum recent trends in favor of stranger pleasures, daring memoir, and the ruthless re-zhuzhing of classic American lit. Vulture, 2 Jan. 2024 The more experts learned, the stranger pterosaurs became. Riley Black, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 Sep. 2023 In that one split second, some stranger looks at you, locks onto you and really sees you. James Brown, USA TODAY, 16 Apr. 2023 Participants overwhelmingly preferred their own bears over the standard and stranger bears. Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Discover Magazine, 25 Mar. 2023 That’s a tall task, but this is March, and stranger things have happened. Lindsay Schnell, USA TODAY, 3 Mar. 2023 There are some stranger allegations too — including that Lee Soo-Man forced the K-Pop group Aespa to incorporate pro-environmental messages into their music, leading to long delays in a new project from the group. Los Angeles Times, 22 Feb. 2023 Recently, things have also gotten considerably stranger. Jacob Stern, The Atlantic, 9 Jan. 2023
Verb
She will be passed from stranger to stranger for the next two years—foster homes, shelters, juvenile detention. Alex Mar, Rolling Stone, 25 Mar. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'stranger.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English straunger, straungier "foreigner, alien, unfamiliar person, outsider," borrowed from Anglo-French estranger, estraunger "outsider, foreigner, unfamiliar person" (as adjective) "not related by blood, foreign" (also continental Middle French estrangier), from estrange "foreign, strange entry 1" + -er, -ier -er entry 2

Adjective

from attributive use of stranger entry 1

Verb

derivative of stranger entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1606, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of stranger was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near stranger

Cite this Entry

“Stranger.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stranger. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

stranger

noun
strang·​er
ˈstrān-jər
1
: one who is strange
2
a
c
: a person with whom or a thing with which one is unacquainted

Legal Definition

stranger

noun
strang·​er
: someone who is not a party or in privity with a party (as to a contract or legal action)
may be enforced against a stranger to the contract

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