GNU Collaborative International Dictionary of English

Found 2 definitions

  1.       
    Stranger (?), n. [OF. estrangier, F. étranger. See Strange.]
    1. One who is strange, foreign, or unknown. Specifically: --

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    (a) One who comes from a foreign land; a foreigner.

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    I am a most poor woman and a stranger,

    Born out of your dominions. Shak.

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    (b) One whose home is at a distance from the place where he is, but in the same country.

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    (c) One who is unknown or unacquainted; as, “the gentleman is a stranger to me”; hence, one not admitted to communication, fellowship, or acquaintance.

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    Melons on beds of ice are taught to bear,

    And strangers to the sun yet ripen here. Granville.

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    My child is yet a stranger in the world. Shak.

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    I was no stranger to the original. Dryden.

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    2. One not belonging to the family or household; a guest; a visitor.

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    To honor and receive

    Our heavenly stranger. Milton.

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    3. (Law) One not privy or party an act, contract, or title; a mere intruder or intermeddler; one who interferes without right; as, “actual possession of land gives a good title against a stranger having no title; as to strangers, a mortgage is considered merely as a pledge; a mere stranger to the levy”.

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  2.       
    Stranger, v. t. To estrange; to alienate. [Obs.]  Shak.

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