any of several North American felines of the genus Lynx.Compare lynx.
a yellowish-gray, black-striped feline, Felis sylvestris, of Europe, western Asia, and northern Africa, resembling and closely related to the domestic cat, with which it interbreeds freely.
a closely related feline, Felis sylvestris libyca, of northern Africa, believed to be the ancestor of the domestic cat.
any of several other of the smaller felines, as the serval or ocelot.
a domestic cat that has become feral.
a quick-tempered or savage person.
Railroads. a single locomotive operating without a train, as one switching cars.
an exploratory well drilled in an effort to discover deposits of oil or gas; a prospect well.
an exploratory drilling for petroleum or natural gas
US and Canadianan unsound commercial enterprise
US and Canadiana railway locomotive in motion without drawing any carriages or wagonsAlso called (in Britain and certain other countries): light engine
(modifier)US and Canadian
of or relating to an unsound business enterprisewildcat stock
financially or commercially unsounda wildcat project
(modifier)US and Canadian(of a train) running without permission or outside the timetable
verb-cats, -cattingor-catted
(intr)to drill for petroleum or natural gas in an area having no known reserves
early 15c., from wild (adj.) + cat (n.). Meaning "savage woman" is recorded from 1570s; sense of "one who forms rash projects" is attested from 1812. The adjective in the financial speculative sense is first recorded 1838, American English.
