ferae naturae

American  

[fee-ree nuh-toor-ee, -tyoor-ee] / ˈfi ri nəˈtʊər i, -ˈtjʊər i /

adjective

Law.

1. (of animals) wild or undomesticated (distinguished from domitae naturae).

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Etymology

Origin of ferae naturae

1655–65; < Latin: literally, of a wild nature

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ferae naturae

For animals upon which the law sets no value, as a dog or cat, and animals ferae naturae, as a bear or wolf, cannot be considered as estrays.

From Commentaries on the Laws of England Book the First by Sir William Blackstone

In the Ettrick text Douglas says that there are no supplies, merely ferae naturae, but he will wait at Otterburn to give Percy his chance.

From Sir Walter Scott and the Border Minstrelsy by Andrew Lang

The most destructive of the ferae naturae, as regards human life, are, however, the snakes.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 7 "Arundel, Thomas" to "Athens" by Various

Coming out of an uncertain past, based on some dark legend of heart-break or blood-shed, they bear no author's name, but are ferae naturae and have the flavor of wild game.

From A History of English Romanticism in the Eighteenth Century by Henry A. (Henry Augustin) Beers

Lord Salisbury replied that fur seals were wild animals, ferae naturae, and not the property of any individual until captured.

From The United States Since the Civil War by Charles Ramsdell Lingley