adj · noun · 8 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
US:kăsʹtəwā
US:/ˈkæs.tə.weɪ/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
UK:/ˈkɑːstəweɪ/
UK:/ˈkæstəweɪ/
CMU ARPABET:K AE1 S T AH0 W EY2
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
adj
Meaning 1
Cast adrift or ashore; marooned.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
Examples
After the mutiny, the castaway ship's officers suffered a month at sea in the lifeboat.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
adj
Meaning 2
Shipwrecked.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
Examples
The storm left them castaway on an uninhabited island.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
adj
Meaning 3
Cast out; rejected or excluded from a group.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: not-comparable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
A shipwrecked sailor.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: nautical, transport
Examples
Robinson Crusoe was a famous fictional castaway.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
A discarded person or thing.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
This old coat was a castaway in someone's trash.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
6
noun
Meaning 6
An outcast; someone cast out of a group or society.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Examples
These homeless people are society's castaways.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
7
noun
Meaning 7
a shipwrecked person
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: shipwreck survivor
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: abandoned person
8
noun
Meaning 8
a person who is rejected (from society or home)
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: outcast, pariah, Ishmael
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: unfortunate, unfortunate person
Narrower terms: heretic, misbeliever, religious outcast, leper, untouchable, Harijan
History
Etymology
Deverbal from cast away.
Across languages
Translations
54 source translations are retained for this English entry.