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Waif itself is a stray, if we consider its first meaning the home from which it came. Tracing back to an Anglo-French adjective waif meaning "stray, unclaimed," the English noun waif referred in its earliest 14th century uses to unclaimed found items, such as those gone astray (think cattle) and those washed ashore (think jetsam), as well as to the king's (or lord's) right to such property. Stolen goods abandoned by a thief in flight eventually came to be referred to as waifs as well, as later did anything found without an owner and especially by chance. (It's interesting to note that the verb waive, used in modern English in phrases like "waive a fee" or "waive one's rights" comes from the same Anglo-French source as waif and was at one time used to mean "to throw away (stolen goods).") The emphasis on being found faded as waif came to be applied to any stray animal or person, and especially to a homeless child, and in the late 20th century the current most common meaning of "an extremely thin and usually young woman" developed.
Examples of waif in a Sentence
Patricia Marx, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
His socialite wife, Margo (Malin Akerman), quickly takes Sophie under her wing, introducing the wide-eyed waif to her gaggle of girlfriends, including Jill (Katie Lowes), the wife of the megachurch’s reverend, and Callie (Jaime Ray Newman), the sheriff’s wife.
—Melissa Locker, Time, 23 July 2025
Meanwhile, Bronte the bookstore waif is uncovering the human aquarium.
—Jessica M. Goldstein, Vulture, 24 Apr. 2025
Diminutive Darcy Rose Byrnes makes for a terrific waif of a hotel maid, her presence central to the action.
—Christopher Smith, Orange County Register, 17 Mar. 2025
The immortal embarrassment of Nosferatu The arduous, debilitating affair between melancholic 1830s waif Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) and her vampire lover-enemy Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård, under tons of prosthetics) begins with deception.
—Alex Abad-Santos, Vox, 10 Jan. 2025
Working with Erivo in particular, Hannon, costume designer Paul Tazewell, and their teams found ways to show that Elphaba is no waif at the start of her journey.
—Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 23 Dec. 2024
Who wouldn’t dream of being the waif led to heaven by a dangerous love?
—Katy Waldman, The New Yorker, 21 Nov. 2024
Shelley Duvall, the saucer-eyed, rail-thin waif who starred in seven films directed by her mentor, Robert Altman, and avoided the ax wielded by an unhinged Jack Nicholson in Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, died Thursday.
—Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 July 2024
Cite this Entry
“Waif.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/waif. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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