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• wilderness
  wilderness

  noun

  a wild and uncultivated region, as of forest or desert, uninhabited or inhabited only by wild animals; a tract of wasteland.
• Wilderness
  Wilderness

  noun

  a wooded area in NE Virginia: several battles fought here in 1864 between armies of Grant and Lee.

wilderness

¹ American  

[wil-der-nis] / ˈwɪl dər nɪs /

noun

wildernesses plural

1. a wild and uncultivated region, as of forest or desert, uninhabited or inhabited only by wild animals; a tract of wasteland.

2. a tract of land officially designated as such and protected by the U.S. government.

3. any desolate tract, as of open sea.

4. a part of a garden set apart for plants growing with unchecked luxuriance.

5. a bewildering mass or collection.

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Wilderness ² American  

[wil-der-nis] / ˈwɪl dər nɪs /

noun

1. a wooded area in NE Virginia: several battles fought here in 1864 between armies of Grant and Lee.

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wilderness ¹ British  

/ ˈwɪldənɪs /

noun

1. a wild, uninhabited, and uncultivated region

2. any desolate tract or area

3. a confused mass or collection

4. a person, group, etc, making a suggestion or plea that is ignored

5. no longer having influence, recognition, or publicity

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Wilderness ² British  

/ ˈwɪldənɪs /

noun

1. the barren regions to the south and east of Palestine, esp those in which the Israelites wandered before entering the Promised Land and in which Christ fasted for 40 days and nights

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Synonym Usage

See desert ¹.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• wildernesses
  plural

Etymology

Origin of wilderness

1150–1200; Middle English; Old English *wil ( d ) dēornes, equivalent to either wil ( d ) dēor wild beast ( see wild, deer) + -nes -ness, or wilddēoren wild, savage ( wilddēor + -en -en ² ) + ( -n ) es -ness; probably reinforced by Middle English wildernes, genitive of wildern wilderness (noun use of Old English wilddēoren ), in phrases like wildernes land land of wilderness

Explanation

If you don’t mow your lawn all summer, don’t be surprised if your neighbors complain that it resembles a wilderness, a wild area that is not tended by humans. The wilderness is of course filled with many animals, but did you know that the name of an animal is hidden in the word wilderness? The word actually is a combination of wild plus the Old English word dēor, along with the ending -ness, used in nouns that refer to a certain condition. While dēor eventually turned into our modern word deer, it didn’t refer to the antlered Bambi we imagine. It was simply the word for “animal.”

Example Sentences

Whittaker testified before Congress in 1968, and his advocacy helped establish North Cascades National Park and the Pasayten Wilderness in Washington state, as well as Redwood National Park in California.

From BBC • Apr. 8, 2026

North of the pavement, the North Algodones Dunes Wilderness holds a quieter terrain, where sunflower, ephedra and honey mesquite anchor the sand in subtle defiance of the wind.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2026

The land abutting the Pinto Mountains Wilderness is also home to badgers, bighorn sheep and Mojave fringe-toed lizards.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

Yellowstone Wild, Yellowstone Safari Company and Wilderness Travel all offer one-day or multiday trips in specialized vehicles that get you into the snowbound interior.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026

Between 1989 and 1997, it lost an average of $242 million a year—almost $2 billion all told, according to the Wilderness Society.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson

Related Words

• back country
• desert
• forest
• jungle
• outback
• wasteland