wandering

[ won-der-ing ]
/ ˈwɒn dər ɪŋ /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR wandering ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

moving from place to place without a fixed plan; roaming; rambling: wandering tourists.
having no permanent residence; nomadic: a wandering tribe of Indians.
meandering; winding: a wandering river; a wandering path.

noun

an aimless roving about; leisurely traveling from place to place: a period of delightful wandering through Italy.
Usually wanderings.
  1. aimless travels; meanderings: Her wanderings took her all over the world.
  2. disordered thoughts or utterances; incoherencies: mental wanderings; the wanderings of delirium.
seemingly aimless or random movement or locomotion by a person with a mental disorder or cognitive impairment: Wandering by Alzheimer’s patients is a problem in nursing homes. See also elopement(def 2).

Origin of wandering

before 1000; Middle English (noun, adj.), Old English wandrigende (adj.). See wander, -ing2, -ing1

OTHER WORDS FROM wandering

wan·der·ing·ly, adverb wan·der·ing·ness, noun un·wan·der·ing, adjective un·wan·der·ing·ly, adverb

Words nearby wandering

wand reader, wanda, wander, wander plug, wanderer, wandering, wandering abscess, wandering albatross, wandering cell, wandering goiter, wandering jew

Definition for wandering (2 of 2)

wander
[ won-der ]
/ ˈwɒn dər /

verb (used without object)

verb (used with object)

to travel about, on, or through: He wandered the streets.

noun

Mechanics. the drift of a gyroscope or a similar device.

Origin of wander

before 900; Middle English wandren, Old English wandrian (cognate with German wandern), frequentative of wendan to wend; see -er6

OTHER WORDS FROM wander

wan·der·er, noun out·wan·der, verb (used with object)

Words related to wandering

winding, roving, itinerant, nomadic, meandering, wayfaring, roaming, jaunting, strolling, trekking, mobile, drifting, straying, rambling, unsettled, deviating, vagrant, migrant, vagabond, migratory

Example sentences from the Web for wandering

British Dictionary definitions for wandering

wander
/ (ˈwɒndə) /

verb (mainly intr)

(also tr) to move or travel about, in, or through (a place) without any definite purpose or destination
to proceed in an irregular course; meander
to go astray, as from a path or course
(of the mind, thoughts, etc) to lose concentration or direction
to think or speak incoherently or illogically

noun

the act or an instance of wandering

Derived forms of wander

wanderer, noun wandering, adjective, noun wanderingly, adverb

Word Origin for wander

Old English wandrian; related to Old Frisian wandria, Middle Dutch, Middle High German wanderen

Medical definitions for wandering

wandering
[ wŏn′dər-ĭng ]

adj.

Moving about freely; not fixed; abnormally motile.