wilderness

[ wil-der-nis ]

/ ˈwɪl dər nɪs /

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See synonyms for wilderness on Thesaurus.com

noun

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

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

any desolate tract, as of open sea.

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

a bewildering mass or collection.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of wilderness

1150–1200; Middle English; Old English *wil(d)dēornes, equivalent to either wil(d)dēor wild beast (see wild, deer) + -nes-ness, or wilddēoren wild, savage (wilddēor + -en-en²) + (-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

synonym study for wilderness

1. See desert¹.

Words nearby wilderness

Wilde, Wildean, wildebeest, Wilde, Oscar, wilder, wilderness, wilderness area, Wilderness Road, Wilder, Thornton, wild-eyed, wild fennel

Other definitions for wilderness (2 of 2)

Wilderness

[ wil-der-nis ]

/ ˈwɪl dər nɪs /

noun

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

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use wilderness in a sentence

The Clippers — who somehow keep managing to track down canteens in the desert, only to find them empty — now continue on their walk through the wilderness as they enter decade No.
When It Comes To Playoff Disappointment, The Clippers Are In A League Of Their Own|Chris Herring (chris.herring@fivethirtyeight.com)|September 16, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
Accelerating climate change, development along wilderness boundaries, and rigid forest management practices have all increased the dangers of devastating wildfires in the state and across much of the American West.
In defense of California|James Temple|September 4, 2020|MIT Technology Review
The places in their network, from Page, Arizona, to Park City, Utah, have seen that they can’t just play off parks or wilderness.
The Recreation Economy Isn't As Resilient As We Thought|Heather Hansman|August 29, 2020|Outside Online
Instead the airdrop serves, at great expense, to save trees in the wilderness, where burning, not suppression, might well do more good.
They Know How to Prevent Megafires. Why Won’t Anybody Listen?|by Elizabeth Weil|August 28, 2020|ProPublica

Chestnut says that wolverines are sensitive, shy animals that need a lot of help to recolonize the wilderness they were hunted out of.
Mount Rainier’s first wolverine mama in a century is a sign of the species’ comeback|Hannah Seo|August 28, 2020|Popular-Science
They carved a refuge out of the wilderness and then, in 200 years, built it into the most powerful nation on earth.
Mario Cuomo, Always Moving Us Toward the Light|Mike Barnicle|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The original metaphor was: erect a wall to keep the garden of the church free from the wilderness of politics.
Dear Evangelicals: You’re Being Had|Jay Michaelson|November 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Hold the Dark is set in the Alaskan wilderness, in an isolated village at the lip of the tundra.
Compliments Are Nice, but Enough With the Cormac McCarthy Comparisons|William Giraldi|October 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I went back while Lorne [Michaels] was on his 5-year jaunt in the wilderness, and Ebersol was producing.
Harry Shearer on Being Nixon, ‘The Simpsons Movie’ Sequel, and Why Obama Should Return His Nobel|Marlow Stern|October 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In short, the wilderness skills and outdoor abilities that the founding mothers intended.
Should Girl Scouts Go Back to Basics?|Will Doig|October 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And it shall devour the mountains, and burn the wilderness, and consume all that is green as with fire.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
Never did I feel leaving anybody or any place so much, and Berlin seems to me like a great roaring wilderness.
Music-Study in Germany|Amy Fay
That made the world a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof, that opened not the prison to his prisoners?
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
When one thinks in the wilderness, alone, Felipe, many things become clear.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson
Next day they buried him under the shade of a spreading tree, and left him there—alone in the wilderness.
Hunting the Lions|R.M. Ballantyne

British Dictionary definitions for wilderness (1 of 2)

wilderness

/ (ˈwɪldənɪs) /

noun

a wild, uninhabited, and uncultivated region

any desolate tract or area

a confused mass or collection

a voice in the wilderness or a voice crying in the wilderness a person, group, etc, making a suggestion or plea that is ignored

in the wilderness no longer having influence, recognition, or publicity

Word Origin for wilderness

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

British Dictionary definitions for wilderness (2 of 2)

Wilderness

/ (ˈwɪldənɪs) /

noun

the Wilderness 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

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

wilderness

Origin of wilderness

synonym study for wilderness

Words nearby wilderness

Other definitions for wilderness (2 of 2)

Words related to wilderness

How to use wilderness in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for wilderness (1 of 2)

Word Origin for wilderness

British Dictionary definitions for wilderness (2 of 2)