stranger
Americannoun
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a person with whom one has had no personal acquaintance.
He is a perfect stranger to me.
- Antonyms:
- acquaintance
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a newcomer in a place or locality.
a stranger in town.
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an outsider.
They want no strangers in on the club meetings.
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a person who is unacquainted with or unaccustomed to something (usually followed byto ).
He is no stranger to poverty.
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a person who is not a member of the family, group, community, or the like, as a visitor or guest.
Our town shows hospitality to strangers.
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Law. one not privy or party to an act, proceeding, etc.
noun
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any person whom one does not know
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a person who is new to a particular locality, from another region, town, etc
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a guest or visitor
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(foll by to) a person who is unfamiliar (with) or new (to) something
he is no stranger to computers
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law a person who is neither party nor privy to a transaction
Related Words
Stranger, foreigner both refer to someone regarded as outside of or distinct from a particular group. Stranger may apply to one who does not belong to some group—social, professional, national, etc.—or may apply to a person with whom one is not acquainted. Foreigner emphasizes a difference in language, customs, and background.
Other Word Forms
- strangerlike adjective
Etymology
Origin of stranger
1325–75; Middle English, from Middle French estrangier, equivalent to estrange strange + -ier -ier 2
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
We’re still picnicking under piñatas, and some of us still gather at newsstands to flip through artful magazines and meet like-minded strangers.
From Los Angeles Times
These female strangers share a moment of such sincere human connection that I would have happily watched a dozen more scenes of the two women leaning on each other while they endure their hard-luck lives.
From Los Angeles Times
For almost four years, she has been accused of leading men on, arranging to meet and not showing up, and harassed by complete strangers.
From BBC
She said this led to her eventually being sectioned for her own safety, and noted that this was something she still "received regular social media abuse from strangers about to this day".
From BBC
He is a natural with kids and strangers, and colleagues have been touched when he talks of inheriting a role of service from his mother.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
