wilderness

¹ American  

[wil-der-nis] / ˈwɪl dər nɪs /

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.

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Wilderness ² American  

[wil-der-nis] / ˈwɪl dər nɪs /

noun

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

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wilderness ¹ British  

/ 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

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Wilderness ² British  

/ 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

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Related Words

See desert ¹.

Etymology

Origin of wilderness

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

Example Sentences

The stock spent years in the wilderness afterward, falling to as low as $1.50 in July 2022 from a 2017 closing high of $99.61.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

A self-described B-student, he spent his childhood adventuring in the wilderness near his hometown of Seattle, and as a kid had preferred skiing to YouTube.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

The two had been 14 hours into the Inuvik Weekend Warrior Fat Bike Challenge - a three-day cycle across frozen rivers, remote highways and Canada's Arctic wilderness - when they were forced to withdraw.

From BBC • Mar. 21, 2026

He’s understood in Ireland as a canny political operator who led his boring center-right party, Fianna Fáil, back to power after a decade in the wilderness.

From Salon • Mar. 18, 2026

In their eyes the land was an unoccupied, pristine wilderness.

From "An Indigenous People’s History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

Related Words

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