verb
- Move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment.
- usage: "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.
- usage: "The child strayed from the path and her parents lost sight of her"; "don't drift from the set course"
- Lose clarity or turn aside especially from the main subject of attention or course of argument in writing, thinking, or speaking.
- usage: "She always digresses when telling a story"; "her mind wanders"; "Don't digress when you give a lecture"
adjective
- Unable to find your way.
- usage: "found the straying sheep"
WordNet 3.0 © 2006 by Princeton University
| APA | WordNet. (2010). straying. Retrieved September 20, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/straying/definitions/1184521 |
| Chicago | WordNet. 2010. "straying" http://smartdefine.org/straying/definitions/1184521 (accessed September 20, 2026). |
| Harvard | WordNet 2010, straying, Smart Define, viewed 20 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/straying/definitions/1184521>. |
| MLA | WordNet. "straying" 23 October 2010. Web. 20 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/straying/definitions/1184521> |