straggle

[strag-uh l]

verb (used without object), strag·gled, strag·gling.

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

to wander about in a scattered fashion; ramble.

to spread or be spread in a scattered fashion or at irregular intervals: The trees straggle over the countryside.

Origin of straggle

1350–1400; Middle English straglen < ?

Related formsstrag·gler, nounstrag·gling·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for stragglers

poke, lag, slowpoke, loafer, idler, loiterer, procrastinator, lagger, dawdler, lounger, tarrier

Examples from the Web for stragglers

Contemporary Examples of stragglers

Then the crowd dispersed and a few of the stragglers were arrested.
Mexican Protesters Look to Start a New Revolution
Jason McGahan
November 21, 2014
Dismounting, I received congratulations on not dying from a couple of stragglers in our group who had seen the whole thing unfold.
Monument Valley From the Eyes of a Krazy Kat and John Ford Fan
Malcolm Jones
February 3, 2012
Once in their seats, a coach runs them through the song, attempting to bring the stragglers up to speed.
Secret Rituals of American Idol Auditions Exposed
Richard Rushfield
January 19, 2010
Stragglers were coming and going into the fall and winter, so some delegates did not sign until several months later.
Nothing Happened on the Fourth
Joseph J. Ellis
July 3, 2009

Historical Examples of stragglers

No horse that the stragglers have stolen can overtake Gypsy.
In the Midst of Alarms
Robert Barr
First came four horses, well bunched; after them the stragglers.
Old Man Curry
Charles E. (Charles Emmett) Van Loan
Mrs. Tidditt brought up the rear, marshaling the stragglers, as it were.
Fair Harbor
Joseph Crosby Lincoln
Kendrick noted, with sudden uneasiness, that there were stragglers.
Fair Harbor
Joseph Crosby Lincoln
The two or three stragglers who met the minister carried lanterns.
Keziah Coffin
Joseph C. Lincoln

British Dictionary definitions for stragglers

straggle

verb (intr)

to go, come, or spread in a rambling or irregular way; stray

to linger behind or wander from a main line or part

Derived Formsstraggler, nounstraggling, adjectivestragglingly, adverbstraggly, adjective

Word Origin for straggle

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

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

Word Origin and History for stragglers

straggle

c.1400, "to wander from the proper path, to rove from one's companions," perhaps from a Scandinavian source (cf. dialectal Norwegian stragla "to walk laboriously"), or a frequentative of straken "to move, go." Specifically of soldiers from 1520s. Related: Straggled; straggling.