wild
- 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.
- in a wild manner; wildly.
- 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.
- to travel around as a group, attacking or assaulting (people) in a random and violent way: The man was wilded and left for dead.
- 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
Synonyms for wild
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comAntonyms for wild
Related Words for wildness
vigor, emotion, strength, severity, power, tension, fury, energy, excitement, earnestness, depth, magnitude, fervor, anxiety, concentration, ferocity, windstorm, tornado, tumult, hurricaneExamples from the Web for wildness
Contemporary Examples of wildness
I hid out for weeks in my wilderness, now just a small vulnerable island of wildness, but at the time it felt huge.
Ybarra had also pondered the allure of this kind of wildness.
Michael Ybarra’s Death Underscores the Allure and Dangers of Solo ClimbingScott C. Johnson
July 15, 2012
Even in the middle of a big urban area, the river valleys had a wildness that reminded him of home in Alabama.
I was sick of his lateness and his wildness and sick of all that pain.
Historical Examples of wildness
"Oh, no, we must go—we must go," she said with a hint of wildness in her urgency.
The Innocent AdventuressMary Hastings Bradley
Csar took it, but continued to look at Philip with eyes that were threatening in their wildness.
The ManxmanHall Caine
"True to their wildness, maybe," she answered him disdainfully.
Love-at-ArmsRaphael Sabatini
There was no longer any chance for the wildness of the beast to crop out.
Is civilization a disease?Stanton Coit
But my master was soon sent away for a piece of wildness he did.
Maurice Tiernay Soldier of FortuneCharles James Lever
Wild
- 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
wild
- (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
- in a wild manner
- run wild
- to grow without cultivation or care
- to behave without restraint
- (often plural) a desolate, uncultivated, or uninhabited region
- the wild
- a free natural state of living
- the wilderness
Word Origin for wild
Word Origin and History for wildness
wild
"to run wild," Old English awildian (see wild (adj.)). Wilding in the teen gang sense first recorded 1989.
wild
Old English wilde "in the natural state, uncultivated, undomesticated," from Proto-Germanic *wilthijaz (cf. Old Saxon wildi, Old Norse villr, Old Frisian wilde, Dutch wild, Old High German wildi, German wild, Gothic wilþeis "wild," German Wild (n.) "game"), probably from PIE *ghwelt- (cf. Welsh gwyllt "untamed"), related to the base of Latin ferus (see fierce).
Ursula ... hath bin at all the Salsbury rasis, dancing like wild with Mr Clarks. [letter, 1674]
Meaning "sexually dissolute, loose" is attested from mid-13c. U.S. slang sense of "exciting, excellent" is recorded from 1955. The noun meaning "uncultivated or desolate region" is first attested 1590s in the wilds. Baseball wild pitch is recorded from 1867. Wildest dreams first attested 1961 (in Carson McCullers). Wild West first recorded 1849. Wild Turkey brand of whiskey (Austin Nichols Co.) in use from 1942.
Idioms and Phrases with wildness
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