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| strag·gle [ strágg'l ] |
intransitive verb (past and past participle strag·gled, present participle strag·gling, 3rd person present singular strag·gles) |
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| Definition: |
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1. stray from group: to lag behind, wander away from, or become separated from a group
  rounding up steers that had straggled from the main herd
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2. come or go without a pattern: to move, come, or go in an irregular or disorganized way, usually in ones or twos
People were still straggling in half an hour after the meeting had started.
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3. become scattered: to be or become spread out irregularly over a wide area
primitive shanties straggling over the dunes
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4. grow messily: to grow or hang in a messy or irregular way, often in separate disorderly strands or wisps
The roses had been allowed to straggle across the path.
A few gray wisps straggled from underneath his cap.
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noun (plural strag·gles) |
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| Definition: |
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straggled group or arrangement: a disorganized, scattered, or messy group or arrangement
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| [15th century. Origin ?] |
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| strag·gling adjective |
| strag·gly adjective |
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