straggled

"Straggled the purple wild sweet pea."
 

Main Entry: 1strag·gle
Pronunciation: 'stra-g&l
Function: intransitive verb
Inflected Form(s): strag·gled; strag·gling  /-g(&-)li[ng]/
Etymology: Middle English straglen
Date: 15th century
1 : to wander from the direct course or way : ROVE, STRAY
2 : to trail off from others of its kind <little cabins straggling off into the woods>
- strag·gler  /-g(&-)l&r/ noun


     In this line of the poem straggled is referring to, to wander from the direct course or way. "Straggled the purple wild sweet pea," means that the sweet pea is growing all spread out in no one particular area. It is just growing between the sand and the pieces of drift wood that have been washed up onto the property from the ocean. I think that this is the interpretation of that line because it makes sense that the sweet pea is growing in random order between the pieces of debris and such after the ocean water has washed over it many times.

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