as in random
lacking a definite plan, purpose, or pattern
stray sightings of UFO's, none of which have been rigorously analyzed by scientists
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to trespass
to commit an offense
our straying son swears he's returned to the straight and narrow
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of stray
Juliana Kim, NPR, 15 Apr. 2026
Spooked by a pack of stray dogs, Chesney took off — and an entire community rallied to bring him home, complete with heat-seeking drones, volunteers and one very determined farm keeper logging serious mileage.
—Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 14 Apr. 2026
Gemma Johnstone, The Spruce, 12 Apr. 2026
Tiny imperfections, including surface roughness, slight misalignments, and stray electrical charges, can destabilize the trap.
—Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 11 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for stray
Adjective
Her son loved feeding stray cats and had a knack for fixing things, especially cars.
—Juliana Kim, NPR, 15 Apr. 2026
Spooked by a pack of stray dogs, Chesney took off — and an entire community rallied to bring him home, complete with heat-seeking drones, volunteers and one very determined farm keeper logging serious mileage.
—Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 14 Apr. 2026
Verb
Regularly dig up straying shoots and divide dense clumps every few years.
—Gemma Johnstone, The Spruce, 12 Apr. 2026
Tiny imperfections, including surface roughness, slight misalignments, and stray electrical charges, can destabilize the trap.
—Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 11 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for stray
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stray
Adjective
-
Fans who registered for the first drop of tickets but did not receive a time slot and fans who did not buy their maximum 12 general ticket allotment will automatically be entered into the random lottery Drop 2.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Pearce must continue treatment, submit to random drug tests and follow the NFL’s testing protocol.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Emory claimed that day that those arrested were outsiders who trespassed on school property.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
23 Apr. 2026
-
While monitoring predators at Python Cave — which is home to Egyptian fruit bats confirmed to be infected with the virus — in Uganda's Queen Elizabeth National Park, scientists recorded hundreds of humans trespassing to visit the area.—
Cara Lynn Shultz,
PEOPLE,
22 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
There are a few, scattered references to female gladiators.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Apr. 2026
-
Within minutes of leaving town, the pavement twists downward through tight turns and steep grades as the mountain air begins to warm, the vegetation giving way to chaparral and scattered juniper, then to the stark silhouettes of ocotillo and Mojave yucca.—
Josh Jackson,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Reynolds was dressed in a safari hat, as if prepared to wrangle any animal that happened to wander in off the Santa Monica Freeway.—
Kelefa Sanneh,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
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While the other males in the Willowbank Wildlife Reserve’s Kea group spend lots of time squabbling and making threat displays, Bruce is free to wander the aviary and monopolize feeding stations and prime perches, the study reports.—
Elizabeth Anne Brown,
Scientific American,
20 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The European Union first sanctioned him in 2008, and imposed parallel sanctions in 2022 over the use of live ammunition, arbitrary detention of protesters and journalists, and the violent suppression of demonstrations.—
Efrat Lachter,
FOXNews.com,
20 Apr. 2026
-
But at the meeting, there was an admission that that number was an arbitrary figure.—
John Ramos,
CBS News,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
His portfolio fell 44% in the dot-com crash, and sustained a 40% loss in 2008.—
Terry Savage,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Apr. 2026
-
Lee then came up to the plate and fell behind in the count 1-2.—
Tony Gleason,
Daily News,
25 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stray.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stray. Accessed 26 Apr. 2026.
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