wild

[ wahyld ]

/ waɪld /

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See synonyms for: wild / wilder / wildest / wilds on Thesaurus.com

Definition of wild

adjective, wild·er, wild·est.

living in a state of nature; not tamed or domesticated: a wild animal; wild geese.

growing or produced without cultivation or the care of humans, as plants, flowers, fruit, or honey: wild cherries.

uncultivated, uninhabited, or waste: wild country.

uncivilized or barbarous: wild tribes.

of unrestrained violence, fury, intensity, etc.; violent; furious: wild strife; wild storms.

characterized by or indicating violent feelings or excitement, as actions or a person's appearance: wild cries; a wild look.

frantic or distracted; crazy: to drive someone wild.

violently or uncontrollably affected: wild with rage; wild with pain.

undisciplined, unruly, or lawless: a gang of wild boys.

unrestrained, untrammeled, or unbridled: wild enthusiasm.

disregardful of moral restraints as to pleasurable indulgence: He repented his wild youth.

unrestrained by reason or prudence: wild schemes.

amazing or incredible: Isn't that wild about Bill getting booted out of the club?

disorderly or disheveled: wild hair.

wide of the mark: He scored on a wild throw.

Informal. intensely eager or enthusiastic: wild to get started; wild about the new styles.

Cards. (of a card) having its value decided by the wishes of the players.

Metallurgy. (of molten metal) generating large amounts of gas during cooling, so as to cause violent bubbling.

adverb

in a wild manner; wildly.

noun

Often wilds . an uncultivated, uninhabited, or desolate region or tract; waste; wilderness; desert: a cabin in the wild; a safari to the wilds of Africa.

verb (used with object), wild·ed, wild·ing.

to travel around as a group, attacking or assaulting (people) in a random and violent way: The man was wilded and left for dead.

OTHER WORDS FOR wild

1 undomesticated, untamed, unbroken; ferocious.

4 barbarian, savage.

5 tempestuous, stormy, frenzied, turbulent.

6 boisterous.

7 insane.

9 self-willed, riotous, unrestrained, wayward.

10 uncontrollable.

12 reckless, rash, extravagant, impracticable.

13 grotesque, bizarre, strange, fanciful.

14 unkempt.

See synonyms for wild on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR wild

1 tame.

See antonyms for wild on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

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Question 1 of 9

Which of the following nouns has an irregular plural form?

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Idioms about wild

blow wild, (of an oil or gas well) to spout in an uncontrolled way, as in a blowout.Compare blowout (def. 4).

in the wild,

in a natural state or in the wilderness.
in the real world; in real life:language learning in the classroom and in the wild.

run wild,

to grow unchecked: The rambler roses are running wild.
to show lack of restraint or control: Those children are allowed to run wild.

Origin of wild

before 900; Middle English, Old English wilde; cognate with Dutch, German wild,Old Norse villr,Swedish vild,Gothic wiltheis

OTHER WORDS FROM wild

wildly, adverbwildness, nounhalf-wild, adjectivehalf-wildly, adverb

half-wildness, nouno·ver·wild, adjectiveo·ver·wild·ly, adverbo·ver·wild·ness, nounsem·i·wild, adjectivesem·i·wild·ly, adverbsem·i·wild·ness, nounun·wild, adjectiveun·wild·ly, adverbun·wild·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use wild in a sentence

To get past these limitations, scientists have proposed creating self-disseminating vaccines that would naturally spread in wild populations.
Can Vaccines for Wildlife Prevent Human Pandemics?|Rodrigo Pérez Ortega|August 24, 2020|Quanta Magazine
Carolina won its final three games of the regular season to ensure a wild-card bid in the playoffs and then proceeded to shock the hockey world with an opening-round, upset win over the defending Stanley Cup champion Washington Capitals.
Can The Hurricanes Win The Stanley Cup With Mediocre Goaltending?|Terrence Doyle|August 11, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
The playoffs will include every division’s first- and second-place teams, along with two extra wild cards from each league.
The Winners And Losers In MLB’s New Playoff Format|Neil Paine (neil.paine@fivethirtyeight.com)|July 24, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
The Santa Fe team’s theory is currently “an important proof of principle” — “an organization scheme create some reasonable order in that wild west of biology,” Laubichler said.
What Is an Individual? Biology Seeks Clues in Information Theory.|Jordana Cepelewicz|July 16, 2020|Quanta Magazine

It’s not clear yet whether eggs survive in this way in the wild.
Fish eggs can hatch after being eaten and pooped out by ducks|Carolyn Wilke|June 29, 2020|Science News
This is a Hollywood director at the height of his powers creating original, wildly ambitious epics.
Oscars 2015: The Daily Beast’s Picks, From Scarlett Johansson to ‘Boyhood’|Marlow Stern|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Coca-Cola was a wildly popular drink and hangover remedy because, well, it contained cocaine.
History's Craziest Hangover Cures|Justin Jones|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And yet—as any private who went through basic can tell you—good weapons training means not shooting wildly 14 times.
A Veteran’s View: NYC Cold War Between Cops and City Hall|Matt Gallagher|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
EatWith—the latest in a parade of wildly popular Israeli startups—can help.
The Airbnb of Home-Cooked Meals|Itay Hod|November 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Does the process of writing a novel differ wildly from writing a screenplay?
David Cronenberg: Why Frustrated Novelists Hate the Screenplay|Craig Hubert|October 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Mobs of people filled the streets, wildly denouncing the incapability of a Government which could lead them to such disaster.
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman
Upon its tumultuous volume they swept forward, side by side… striking out wildly.
The Wave|Algernon Blackwood
At the end of the first shocked instant, they both laughed wildly, desperately.
Rosemary in Search of a Father|C. N. Williamson
The horses pricked up their ears, snuffed the night air wildly, and showed every symptom of being ill at ease.
Hunting the Lions|R.M. Ballantyne
She had sunk down beside the bed, her head was buried in the pillow; she was sobbing wildly.
The World Before Them|Susanna Moodie

British Dictionary definitions for wild (1 of 2)

wild

/ (waɪld) /

adjective

(of animals) living independently of man; not domesticated or tame

(of plants) growing in a natural state; not cultivated

uninhabited or uncultivated; desolatea wild stretch of land

living in a savage or uncivilized waywild tribes

lacking restraintwild merriment

of great violence or intensitya wild storm

disorderly or chaoticwild thoughts; wild talk

dishevelled; untidywild hair

in a state of extreme emotional intensitywild with anger

recklesswild speculations

not calculated; randoma wild guess

unconventional; fantastic; crazywild friends

(postpositive foll by about) informal intensely enthusiastic or excited

(of a card, such as a joker or deuce in some games) able to be given any value the holder pleasesjacks are wild

wild and woolly

rough; untamed; barbarous
(of theories, plans, etc) not fully thought out

adverb

in a wild manner

run wild

to grow without cultivation or care
to behave without restraint

noun

(often plural) a desolate, uncultivated, or uninhabited region

the wild

a free natural state of living
the wilderness

Derived forms of wild

wildish, adjectivewildly, adverbwildness, noun

Word Origin for wild

Old English wilde; related to Old Saxon, Old High German wildi, Old Norse villr, Gothic wiltheis

British Dictionary definitions for wild (2 of 2)

Wild

/ (waɪld) /

noun

Jonathan. ?1682–1725, British criminal, who organized a network of thieves, highwaymen, etc, while also working as an informer: said to have sent over a hundred men to the gallows before being hanged himself

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with wild

wild

In addition to the idioms beginning with wild

wild about, be
wild card
wild goose chase
wild horses couldn't drag me
wild oats
wild pitch

also see:

go hog wild
go wilding
run amok (wild)
sow one's wild oats

wild

Definition of wild

OTHER WORDS FOR wild

OPPOSITES FOR wild

Idioms about wild

Origin of wild

OTHER WORDS FROM wild

Words related to wild

How to use wild in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for wild (1 of 2)

Derived forms of wild

Word Origin for wild

British Dictionary definitions for wild (2 of 2)

Other Idioms and Phrases with wild