wild man
Americannoun
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a person who is uncivilized; a savage.
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a person of violent temper, erratic behavior, etc.
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a person of extreme or outrageous political opinions.
noun
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a savage
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an extremist in politics
Etymology
Origin of wild man
Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“He’s a wild man out there,” Lea said of Pavia last month.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2025
She also spares her a terrible fate at the hands of a wild man in the woods, a long-lost survivor of a Jesuit expedition gone feral.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2023
She also linked it with various other figures from English folklore, like the woodwose, a wild man covered in fur.
From Slate ● Apr. 8, 2023
In a country song tailored to Lewis’s wild man reputation, he sings about a faithful, temperate life.
From New York Times ● Oct. 28, 2022
We could have been an Okie family heading west, while Papa in his wide-brim hat and his turtleneck sweater drove like a wild man, as if he couldn't wait to get back to civilization.
From "Farewell to Manzanar" by Jeanne Houston
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
