straggle

noun

No English definition recorded for this entry.

Pronunciation: /ˈstɹæɡl̩/

Etymology: From Middle English straglen, of uncertain origin, possibly from (or cognate to) dialectal Norwegian stragla (“to walk laboriously”).

An irregular, spread-out group.
“Twenty-five hundred hands snapped at a slant to the hats. The admiral strolled onto the field, smoking, followed by a straggle of officers, walking carelessly to symbolize the privileges of rank, but straggling at distances from the admiral strictly regulated by the number of sleeve stripes on each stragger.”
“At Milton the road is blocked by yet another Anzac parade, a straggle of people raw-faced in the cold.”
An outlier; something that has strayed beyond the normal limits.
“Nevertheless there is a straggle of pungent sense in it, — like the outskirts of lightning, seen in that dismally wet weather, which the Royal Party had.”

Etymology: From Middle English straglen, of uncertain origin, possibly from (or cognate to) dialectal Norwegian stragla (“to walk laboriously”).

To stray, rove, or wander from a normal course and others of its kind.
“He straggled away from the crowd and went off on his own.”
“What, feareful coward, ſtragling from the camp, When Kings themſelues are preſent in the field?”
To act in a disorderly and irregular way.
“straggling pistol shots”
“They came between Scylla and Charybdis and the straggling rocks.”
To move along slowly so as to remain some distance behind the person or people in front.
“In the reverse direction, creature comforts were not closely studied, and the vessel left Antwerp at 1 p.m., to arrive in Harwich at the awkward hour of 2 a.m. The boat train was waiting for the weary stream of passengers, who straggled up George Street, encumbered with luggage, or following burdened porters in the darkness.”