[weɪf], (Noun)

Definitions:
- a homeless, neglected, or abandoned person, especially a child
(e.g: she is foster mother to various waifs and strays)


Phrases:

Origin:
late Middle English: from an Anglo-Norman French variant of Old Northern French gaif, probably of Scandinavian origin. Early use was often in waif and stray, as a legal term denoting a piece of property found and, if unclaimed, falling to the lord of the manor