stranger

STRAYN-jur/ˈstɹeɪnd͡ʒɚ/UKSTRAYN-juh/ˈstɹeɪnd͡ʒə(ɹ)/

Pluralstrangers

10 meanings of stranger

Practice

1
nouncountable
Someone you do not know, who is neither a friend nor a person you've met.
Like a face in a crowd that you have never seen before.
A stranger asked me for directions outside the station.
My mom told me never to talk to strangers.
Oppositefriend, acquaintance
Note
2
nouncountable
A person from another place or country who does not belong here.
In the old town, a stranger from the city was easy to spot.
The villagers were wary of strangers passing through.
Similaroutsider, foreigner, alien, newcomer, incomer
Oppositelocal, native, insider
Note
3
nouncountable
A person who has just arrived in a place and is new to it.
As a stranger to the school, he didn't know anyone yet.
Strangers to the town often get lost in the old streets.
Similarnewcomer, incomer, outsider
Oppositeveteran, old-timer, regular
Note
4
adjective
Comparative form of strange. Use it to say one thing is more strange than another.
This is even stranger than the last story she told.
The noise grew stranger with every passing minute.
Note
5
nounhumorouscountable
A friend or family member you greet jokingly as if you don't know them, after a long time apart.
Well, look who it is. Hello, stranger!
She greeted her old roommate with a laugh: "Hey, stranger!"
6
nouncountable
A person who is not part of a legal deal or contract and has no right to step in.
Like someone trying to join a game they were never invited to play.
As a stranger to the contract, he had no right to demand payment.
The court ruled that strangers to the agreement could not enforce its terms.
Similaroutsider, nonparty, interloper
Oppositeparty
Note
7
nouncountable
A person who is not allowed to join a church group or share in its worship.
Like a guest who may watch a family dinner but is not allowed to sit down and eat.
As a stranger to the congregation, he could not take part in the meal.
Strangers were asked to wait outside during the private service.
Similaroutsider, nonmember
Oppositemember, communicant

Less common meanings

8
nounobsolete
A guest or visitor who is not part of the family or household.
To honour and receive / Our heavenly stranger.
1667, John Milton, Paradise LostHere, stranger means a guest or visitor from outside the household.
Note
9
nounobsolete
A small sign, like a leaf in your tea, that is believed to mean a visitor is coming.
Like seeing dark clouds and thinking it will rain, but here the sign means a guest is coming.
Grandmother fished the stranger from her tea and said a guest would come.
Two strangers in the teacup meant company was on its way.
Note
10
verbobsoletetransitive
To make someone feel far away from a person they were once close to.
Like a gap slowly opening between two people until they feel like strangers.
Pride can stranger a man from those who love him most.
Dowered with our curse, and strangered with our oath
c. 1603, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of King Lear”Here, strangered means made distant, cut off from someone once close.
Note

stranger is a form of strange

strange, adjective: Not normal or usual, and often a little worrying. Full entry

Forms: strangestranger comparativestrangest superlative
Spelling: strange → stranger: add -r

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of stranger apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

From Old French estrangier meaning "foreign," which came from Latin extraneus meaning "foreign" or "outside."