stranded; stranding; strands
1
: to run, drive, or cause to drift onto a strand : run aground
2
: to leave in a strange or an unfavorable place especially without funds or means to depart
3
: to leave (a base runner) on base at the end of an inning in baseball
: to become stranded
1
a
: fibers or filaments twisted, plaited, or laid parallel to form a unit for further twisting or plaiting into yarn, thread, rope, or cordage
b
: one of the wires twisted together or laid parallel to form a wire rope or cable
c
: something (such as a molecular chain) resembling a strand
a strand of DNA
2
a
: an element (such as a yarn or thread) of a woven or plaited material
b
: a threadlike piece of natural or synthetic material
a strand of hair
3
: an elongated or twisted and plaited body resembling a rope
a strand of pearls
4
: one of the elements interwoven in a complex whole
one strand of the novel's plot
stranded; stranding; strands
1
: to break a strand of (a rope) accidentally
2
a
: to form (something, such as a rope) from strands
b
: to play out, twist, or arrange in a strand
Synonyms
Examples of strand in a Sentence
Noun (1)
the wishful dream of living an indolent, idyllic existence on some far-off strand
Verb (1)
the ghostly remains of ships that had been stranded by the reef
he just drove off, stranding her in some dinky town with just a few bucks and the clothes she was wearing
Recent Examples on the Web
Sheri Castle, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 May 2024
Others stuck to their tried and true styles, with Ariana Grande wearing her signature long pony and Naomi Campbell going sleek and straight with her iconic long strands.
—Audrey Noble, Vogue, 7 May 2024
In a behind-the-scenes video shared with PEOPLE, the Baywatch alum initially has three diamond necklaces around her neck before the Pandora team switches things up by draping two strands of diamonds over her shoulder for a chic, unexpected twist.
—Catherine Santino, Peoplemag, 7 May 2024
In the sixth week, Bing nailed the beach scene on a strand in Oyster Bay.
—Nick Paumgarten, The New Yorker, 6 May 2024
The fence is more than 8 feet tall and is topped with a strand of barbed wire — too high for many animals to jump and dangerous for those that attempt to do so.
—Elise Schmelzer, The Denver Post, 5 May 2024
The set comes with five strands that measure about 6.5 feet in length, each adorned with faux green leaves and pink roses that are made from plastic and silk.
—Clara McMahon, Peoplemag, 4 May 2024
People with fine hair may feel like their strands are being weighed down from the greasy, thick consistency, both Dr. Zubritsky and Dr. Castilla say.
—Jenna Ryu, SELF, 2 May 2024
The book set a strand of apocalyptic worry about AI smoldering that recently flared up following the arrival of ChatGPT.
—Will Knight, WIRED, 2 May 2024
Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 24 Apr. 2024
The series follows the Yellowjackets high school women’s soccer team — along with Coach Ben and their other coach’s sons Travis and Javi — as their plane crashes and strands them somewhere in the Canadian wilderness in 1996.
—Skyler Trepel, Peoplemag, 21 Apr. 2024
The Razorbacks stranded two runners at second base through the first five innings but could not get one to third.
—Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 20 Apr. 2024
On the way back home, the car broke down, stranding her and Chris at a gas station in Maryland.
—E. Tammy Kim, The New Yorker, 19 Apr. 2024
The effort has fallen far short of expectations, leaving many workers who claimed lasting health effects stranded with little or no payment.
—Travis Loller, Fortune Europe, 19 Apr. 2024
Sixteen hours later, more than 60 people were still stranded in the remaining nine cabins in the air, the ministry said.
—Reuters, CNN, 13 Apr. 2024
Scars from a previous entanglement unrelated to the stranding event were found around the peduncle, which is the muscular area where the tail connects to the body; on the tail itself, and on the right front pectoral flipper.
—Wayne Parry, Fortune, 13 Apr. 2024
The offensive woes continued in a 2-1 loss to the Rays that kicked off a six-game swing through Florida, with the would-be tying run left stranded at third base.
—Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 12 Apr. 2024
Noun
Old recipes often called for boiling the chicken for upward of an hour, which might have been a good advice for tough old yard birds, but can turn the meat into ropey strands.
—Sheri Castle, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 May 2024
Others stuck to their tried and true styles, with Ariana Grande wearing her signature long pony and Naomi Campbell going sleek and straight with her iconic long strands.
—Audrey Noble, Vogue, 7 May 2024
In a behind-the-scenes video shared with PEOPLE, the Baywatch alum initially has three diamond necklaces around her neck before the Pandora team switches things up by draping two strands of diamonds over her shoulder for a chic, unexpected twist.
—Catherine Santino, Peoplemag, 7 May 2024
In the sixth week, Bing nailed the beach scene on a strand in Oyster Bay.
—Nick Paumgarten, The New Yorker, 6 May 2024
The fence is more than 8 feet tall and is topped with a strand of barbed wire — too high for many animals to jump and dangerous for those that attempt to do so.
—Elise Schmelzer, The Denver Post, 5 May 2024
The set comes with five strands that measure about 6.5 feet in length, each adorned with faux green leaves and pink roses that are made from plastic and silk.
—Clara McMahon, Peoplemag, 4 May 2024
People with fine hair may feel like their strands are being weighed down from the greasy, thick consistency, both Dr. Zubritsky and Dr. Castilla say.
—Jenna Ryu, SELF, 2 May 2024
The book set a strand of apocalyptic worry about AI smoldering that recently flared up following the arrival of ChatGPT.
—Will Knight, WIRED, 2 May 2024
Verb
Related Articles The Giants went hitless in seven tries with runners in scoring position and stranded 11 men on base.
—Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 24 Apr. 2024
The series follows the Yellowjackets high school women’s soccer team — along with Coach Ben and their other coach’s sons Travis and Javi — as their plane crashes and strands them somewhere in the Canadian wilderness in 1996.
—Skyler Trepel, Peoplemag, 21 Apr. 2024
The Razorbacks stranded two runners at second base through the first five innings but could not get one to third.
—Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 20 Apr. 2024
On the way back home, the car broke down, stranding her and Chris at a gas station in Maryland.
—E. Tammy Kim, The New Yorker, 19 Apr. 2024
The effort has fallen far short of expectations, leaving many workers who claimed lasting health effects stranded with little or no payment.
—Travis Loller, Fortune Europe, 19 Apr. 2024
Sixteen hours later, more than 60 people were still stranded in the remaining nine cabins in the air, the ministry said.
—Reuters, CNN, 13 Apr. 2024
Scars from a previous entanglement unrelated to the stranding event were found around the peduncle, which is the muscular area where the tail connects to the body; on the tail itself, and on the right front pectoral flipper.
—Wayne Parry, Fortune, 13 Apr. 2024
The offensive woes continued in a 2-1 loss to the Rays that kicked off a six-game swing through Florida, with the would-be tying run left stranded at third base.
—Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 12 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'strand.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near strand
Cite this Entry
“Strand.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/strand. Accessed 10 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
strand
2 of 3 verb1
: to run aground : beach
boats stranded by the storm
2
: to leave in a strange or an unfavorable place especially without a way of departing
stranded in a strange city
strand
3 of 3 noun1
: one of the fibers, threads, strings, or wires twisted or braided to make a cord, rope, or cable
2
: something resembling a strand
a strand of pearls
a strand of DNA
3
: one of the elements of a complicated whole
the strands of a legal argument
Etymology
Noun
Old English strand "shore"
Noun
Middle English strond "strand, fiber"
Medical Definition
strand
noun
: something (as a molecular chain) resembling a thread
a strand of DNA
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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