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• wilding
  wilding

  noun

  a wild apple tree.
• Wilding
  Wilding

  noun

  ( Frederick ) Anthony . 1883–1915, New Zealand tennis player; Wimbledon singles champion (1910–1913) and doubles champion (1907–08, 1910, 1913)

wilding

¹ American  

[wahyl-ding] / ˈwaɪl dɪŋ /

noun

1. a wild apple tree.

2. its fruit.

3. any plant that grows wild.

4. a plant, originally cultivated, that now grows wild; an escape.

5. a wild animal.

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adjective

1. not cultivated or domesticated; wild.

wilding ² American  

noun

1. the practice by a group of youths of going on a random spree of violent criminal activity.

2. an instance of this.

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adjective

1. of or relating to such criminal activity.

   wilding teens;

   a wilding attack.

wilding ¹ British  

/ ˈwaɪldɪŋ /

noun

1. an uncultivated plant, esp the crab apple, or a cultivated plant that has become wild

2. a wild animal

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Wilding ² British  

/ ˈwaɪldɪŋ /

noun

1. ( Frederick ) Anthony . 1883–1915, New Zealand tennis player; Wimbledon singles champion (1910–1913) and doubles champion (1907–08, 1910, 1913)

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Etymology

Origin of wilding¹

First recorded in 1520–30; wild + -ing ³

Origin of wilding²

First recorded in 1985–90; wild + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

He’s also been wilding out on Truth Social, uncorking a series of posts that are unhinged, even for him.

From Salon • Jun. 25, 2025

Also in the crowd: Olivia Rodrigo and Demi Lovato, the latter of whom posted a video on Instagram of the former wilding out to “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 5, 2023

“Our young people are out here wilding sometimes, and whatever it takes for us to get them under control, we have to do it,” he said.

From Washington Post • Sep. 8, 2022

One of my favorite style of tweets is when people are like, “the brands are at it again,” and it usually just means brands are wilding on Twitter.

From The Verge • Aug. 23, 2022

“They wilding out here,” DeVante says with a chuckle, but grabs his side.

From "The Hate U Give" by Angie Thomas