wild oats

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pl n

slang the indiscretions of youth, esp dissoluteness before settling down (esp in the phrase sow one's wild oats)

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Words nearby wild oats

wild man, wild mandrake, wild monkshood, wild mustard, wild oat, wild oats, wild olive, wild orange, wild pansy, wild parsley, wild parsnip

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

How to use wild oats in a sentence

He has wild swings between trying not to care about Lana and the baby, and being completely obsessed by it.
‘Archer’ Creator Adam Reed Spills Season 6 Secrets, From Surreal Plotlines to Life Post-ISIS|Marlow Stern|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The sound of birds, quail, even doe, make a wild grid of noise.
The Story Behind Lee Marvin’s Liberty Valance Smile|Robert Ward|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Exactly when the transition to modern domestic creature took place, for a bird that is wild to this day, is controversial.
The History of the Chicken: How This Humble Bird Saved Humanity|William O’Connor|December 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It is wild that something that would seem to be so scandalous would just disappear from the press.
Inside the Lifetime Whitney Houston Movie’s Lesbian Lover Storyline|Kevin Fallon|December 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Everyone who saw Beasts of the Southern Wild knows Wallis is a unique talent, but still, no one saw this coming.
The Golden Globes Sobers Up (Sort Of): Years of Ridicule and Bribery Rumors Scares HFPA Straight|Marlow Stern|December 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They are so rich in harmony, so weird, so wild, that when you hear them you are like a sea-weed cast upon the bosom of the ocean.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
The white men served their smoking cannon with a wild energy that, for a time, made the gallant nine equal to a thousand.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
A cricket-match was in progress, but the bowling and batting were extremely wild, thanks to The Warren strong beer.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
People are busy ballooning or driving; shooting like stars along railroads; or migrating like swallows or wild-geese.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
Suddenly he shot a disturbing glance at Tressan's face, and the corner of his wild-cat mustachios twitched.
St. Martin's Summer|Rafael Sabatini

Other Idioms and Phrases with wild oats

wild oats

see sow one's wild oats.