Crossword Genius

Ringleader stops outside or wanders off (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

strays

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'wanders off' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)

'ringleader stops outside' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'ringleader' could be 'r' (first letter of ring) and 'r' is present in the answer.
The remaining letters 'stays' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'or' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for strays that I've seen before include "Wanders off, digresses" , "Wanders off the intended route" , "Wanders off the beaten track, gets lost" , "Runaways" , "Wanders off the right path" .)

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