straggle

[ strag-uhl ]
See synonyms for: stragglestragglingstraggler on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),strag·gled, strag·gling.
  1. to spread or be spread in a scattered fashion or at irregular intervals: The trees straggle over the countryside.

  2. to lag behind others: Some organizations have caught on to this concept, but others are straggling behind.

  1. to stray from the road, course, or line of march.

  2. to wander about in a scattered fashion; ramble.

Origin of straggle

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English straglen, of uncertain origin, perhaps a variant of strackle (unrecorded), frequentative of obsolete strake “to go, move” (see -le ); cf. stagger

Other words from straggle

  • strag·gler, noun
  • strag·gling·ly, adverb

Words Nearby straggle

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use straggle in a sentence

  • The Rebel army had made slower marches, and the soldiers could not straggle; they were in an enemy's country.

    The Boys of '61 | Charles Carleton Coffin.
  • Soon groups of natives began to straggle up, not in regular formation this time.

    A Frontier Mystery | Bertram Mitford
  • The agile and powerful Zulu, however, was half up in a moment, and the straggle became a hand-to-hand one.

    The Luck of Gerard Ridgeley | Bertram Mitford
  • He could either possess his soul in patience until the mounted contingent began to straggle back, or risk another rock-fall.

British Dictionary definitions for straggle

straggle

/ (ˈstræɡəl) /


verb(intr)
  1. to go, come, or spread in a rambling or irregular way; stray

  2. to linger behind or wander from a main line or part

Origin of straggle

1
C14: of uncertain origin; perhaps related to strake and stretch

Derived forms of straggle

  • straggler, noun
  • straggling, adjective
  • stragglingly, adverb
  • straggly, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012