wilderness

¹

[wil-der-nis]

noun

1. a wild and uncultivated region, as of forest or desert, uninhabited or inhabited only by wild animals; a tract of wasteland.

2. a tract of land officially designated as such and protected by the U.S. government.

3. any desolate tract, as of open sea.

4. a part of a garden set apart for plants growing with unchecked luxuriance.

5. a bewildering mass or collection.

Wilderness

²

[wil-der-nis]

noun

1. a wooded area in NE Virginia: several battles fought here in 1864 between armies of Grant and Lee.

wilderness

¹

/ ˈwɪldənɪs /

noun

1. a wild, uninhabited, and uncultivated region

2. any desolate tract or area

3. a confused mass or collection

4. a person, group, etc, making a suggestion or plea that is ignored

5. no longer having influence, recognition, or publicity

Wilderness

²

/ ˈwɪldənɪs /

noun

1. the barren regions to the south and east of Palestine, esp those in which the Israelites wandered before entering the Promised Land and in which Christ fasted for 40 days and nights

Word History and Origins

Origin of wilderness¹

1150–1200; Middle English; Old English *wil ( d ) dēornes, equivalent to either wil ( d ) dēor wild beast ( wild, deer ) + -nes -ness, or wilddēoren wild, savage ( wilddēor + -en -en ² ) + ( -n ) es -ness; probably reinforced by Middle English wildernes, genitive of wildern wilderness (noun use of Old English wilddēoren ), in phrases like wildernes land land of wilderness

Word History and Origins

Origin of wilderness¹

Old English wildēornes, from wildēor wild beast (from _wild + dēor beast, _deer ) + _-ness ; related to Middle Dutch wildernisse, German Wildernis

Synonym Study

See desert ¹.

Example Sentences

Adventure racing is a team sport that involves navigating an unmarked course through a wilderness, or near-wilderness area.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Orchards, wildernesses and bowers abound in her fiction, where her heroines contemplate curated views or scamper across fields and over stiles.

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Here, the film’s unflinching energy — influenced by Ingmar Bergman’s “Autumn Sonata” — shifts; the camera shakes free from restraint before pulling back to reveal them small against the empty wilderness.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

“In the wilderness, with the bugs and the badgers and those hungry, hungry wolves!”

Read more on Literature

It’s a boot camp of sorts—Camp Panda—wilderness training for panda cubs.

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Related Words

• back country 
• desert 
• forest 
• jungle 
• outback 
• wasteland