What does "estray" mean?

An animal that has escaped from its owner; a wandering animal whose owner is unknown. An animal cannot be an estray when on the range where it was raised, and permitted by its owner to run. A lost animal whose owner is known to the party at hand is not an estray.

What is a synonym for "estray"?

Common synonyms include: feral cat.

Estray

//ə.stɹeɪ// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1
An animal that has escaped from its owner; a wandering animal whose owner is unknown. An animal cannot be an estray when on the range where it was raised, and permitted by its owner to run. A lost animal whose owner is known to the party at hand is not an estray.
2
Stray. archaic
"[...] All the day / Had been a dreary one at best, and dim / Was settling to its close, yet shot one grim / Red leer to see the plain catch its estray."

Verb

1
To stray. archaic
"With other Maids to fiſh upon the Shoar; Estrays apart, and leaves her Company"

Synonyms

All synonyms

feral cat

Example

More examples

"[...] All the day / Had been a dreary one at best, and dim / Was settling to its close, yet shot one grim / Red leer to see the plain catch its estray."

Etymology

From Middle English astrai, from Anglo-Norman estray, from the Old French verb estraier. Etymological doublet with stray.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.