n. 1. a. A homeless person, especially a forsaken or orphaned child. b. An abandoned young animal. 2. A person, especially a young woman, who is thin or gaunt. 3. Something found and unclaimed, as an object cast up by the sea. [Middle English, ownerless property, stray animal, from Anglo-Norman, probably of Scandinavian origin; see weip- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
[Probably of Scandinavian origin; see weip- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.