01 v. i. To wander from the direct course or way; to rove; to stray; to wander from the line of march or desert the line of battle; as, when troops …
imp. & p. p.
Straggled; p. pr. & vb. n.
Straggling
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1.
To wander from the direct course or way; to rove; to stray; to wander from the line of march or desert the line of battle; as, when troops are on the march, the men should not straggle.
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2.
To wander at large; to roam idly about; to ramble.“The wolf spied out a straggling kid.” — L'Estrange.
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3.
To escape or stretch beyond proper limits, as the branches of a plant; to spread widely apart; to shoot too far or widely in growth.“Trim off the small, superfluous branches on each side of the hedge that straggle too far out.” — Mortimer.
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4.
To be dispersed or separated; to occur at intervals.“They came between Scylla and Charybdis and the straggling rocks.” — Sir W. Raleigh.