wilder
verb (used with object)
to cause to lose one's way.
wilder
1 American
[wil-der]
/ ˈwɪl dər /
verb (used with object)
-
to cause to lose one's way.
-
to bewilder.
verb (used without object)
-
to lose one's way.
-
to be bewildered.
wilder
2
American
[wahyl-der]
/ ˈwaɪl dər /
adjective
Wilder
3
American
[wahyl-der]
/ ˈwaɪl dər /
noun
-
Billy Samuel Wilder, 1906–2002, U.S. film director, producer, and writer; born in Austria.
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Laura Ingalls 1867–1957, U.S. writer of children's books.
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Thornton (Niven) 1897–1975, U.S. novelist and playwright.
Wilder
1
British
/ ˈwaɪldə /
noun
-
Billy, real name Samuel Wilder. 1906–2002, US film director and screenwriter, born in Austria. His films include Double Indemnity (1944), The Lost Weekend (1945), Sunset Boulevard (1950), The Seven Year Itch (1955), Some Like it Hot (1959), The Apartment (1960), and Buddy Buddy (1981)
-
Thornton. 1897–1975 US novelist and dramatist. His works include the novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1927) and the play The Skin of Our Teeth (1942)
wilder
2
British
/ ˈwɪldə /
verb
-
to lead or be led astray
-
to bewilder or become bewildered
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of wilder
First recorded in 1605–15; perhaps extracted from wilderness; intransitive use probably by association with wander
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.
See Examples For:
Things got even wilder once the film went into release: At a preview in California, a jeering audience spotted Warner Bros. executives and chased them out into the street.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
Haigh says online comments about her hair colour encouraged her to make it "even wilder"
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
America had its latchkey generation and, along with that, a growing sense that the world is a dangerous place, especially its wilder parts.
From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2026
She had once tried acting in New York, which means that she lived a wilder life once and is something of an improviser.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 15, 2026
It was wilder, and faster, and farther than she’d ever flown before.
From "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld
Reading “The Wilder Way” might not overhaul your life, but it will surely help you see how easily a fuller one can be had.
From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2026
When she was alive, Wilder herself admitted that her novels were extensively embellished, mainly by her daughter Rose Wilder Lane.
From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026
The black cowboy hat Laura sports is straight from a photograph of Wilder as a girl.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
Wright's quiet authority and thirst for hard work were some of the qualities that persuaded Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder to bring the centre back to Bramall Lane in 2016.
From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026
Captain Wilder stood looking first at Mrs. Hathaway and then at her son and her two tall, quiet-moving daughters.
From "The Martian Chronicles" by Ray Bradbury
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.
