wild
adjective
living in a state of nature; not tamed or domesticated.
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wild
American
[wahyld]
/ waɪld /
adjective
-
wilder,
comparative
-
wildest
superlative
-
living in a state of nature; not tamed or domesticated.
a wild animal;
wild geese.
- Antonyms:
- tame
-
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.
- Synonyms:
- turbulent, frenzied, stormy, tempestuous
-
characterized by or indicating violent feelings or excitement, as actions or a person's appearance.
wild cries;
a wild look.
- Synonyms:
- boisterous
-
frantic or distracted; crazy.
to drive someone wild.
- Synonyms:
- insane
-
violently or uncontrollably affected.
wild with rage;
wild with pain.
-
undisciplined, unruly, or lawless.
a gang of wild boys.
- Synonyms:
- wayward, unrestrained, riotous, self-willed
-
unrestrained, untrammeled, or unbridled.
wild enthusiasm.
- Synonyms:
- uncontrollable
-
disregardful of moral restraints as to pleasurable indulgence.
He repented his wild youth.
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unrestrained by reason or prudence.
wild schemes.
- Synonyms:
- rash, reckless, impracticable, extravagant
-
amazing or incredible.
Isn't that wild about Bill getting booted out of the club?
-
disorderly or disheveled.
wild hair.
- Synonyms:
- unkempt
-
wide of the mark.
He scored on a wild throw.
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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
noun
verb (used with object)
wilded,
wilding
idioms
-
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.
-
-
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.
-
-
blow wild, (of an oil or gas well) to spout in an uncontrolled way, as in a blowout.
wild
1
British
/ waɪld /
adjective
-
(of animals) living independently of man; not domesticated or tame
-
(of plants) growing in a natural state; not cultivated
-
uninhabited or uncultivated; desolate
a wild stretch of land
-
living in a savage or uncivilized way
wild tribes
-
lacking restraint
wild merriment
-
of great violence or intensity
a wild storm
-
disorderly or chaotic
wild thoughts
wild talk
-
dishevelled; untidy
wild hair
-
in a state of extreme emotional intensity
wild with anger
-
reckless
wild speculations
-
not calculated; random
a wild guess
-
unconventional; fantastic; crazy
wild friends
-
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 pleases
jacks are wild
-
-
rough; untamed; barbarous
-
(of theories, plans, etc) not fully thought out
-
adverb
-
in a wild manner
-
-
to grow without cultivation or care
-
to behave without restraint
-
noun
-
(often plural) a desolate, uncultivated, or uninhabited region
-
-
a free natural state of living
-
the wilderness
-
Wild
2
British
/ waɪld /
noun
wild
More Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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half-wildnessnoun
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overwildnessnoun
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semiwildnessnoun
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unwildnessnoun
-
wildnessnoun
-
half-wildadjective
-
overwildadjective
-
semiwildadjective
-
unwildadjective
-
wildishadjective
-
half-wildlyadverb
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overwildlyadverb
-
semiwildlyadverb
-
unwildlyadverb
-
wildlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of wild
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English wilde; cognate with Dutch, German wild, Old Norse villr, Swedish vild, Gothic wiltheis
Explanation
Something that's wild lives in nature and isn't tamed. Your pet poodle isn't wild, but the groundhog that lives under your garden shed is wild. An animal or plant in its native habitat is wild, like a wild dingo or a wild strawberry. An untamed bit of nature, like your overgrown back yard, or a stormy ocean, is also wild. If a person is wild, he might be unrestrained, crazy, or even enthusiastic — like someone who's wild about cabaret music. The term "to run wild" means to grow unrestrained, undisciplined, like a wild animal or an imagination that isn't held back by rules.
Vocabulary lists containing wild
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Before you check your portfolio, read Jason’s take on how to keep these wild swings from hijacking your financial future.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
Today’s battle features 16 stunt performers and 10 special action extras playing orcs, as well as eight stunt performers and 42 special action extras playing wild men and women.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026
The Lions handed the Vikings their first loss and Jahmyr Gibbs ran wild.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026
After waiting long hours, watching democratic gains across the country, El-Sayed's supporters went wild when he took the stage to celebrate his victory.
From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2026
Nim’s hair was wild, her eyes were bright, and around her neck she wore three cords.
From "Nim’s Island" by Wendy Orr
In Wild Horse Nine, a pair of CIA agents take a break from planning to overthrow Chile’s Marxist president to take a vacation on Easter Island.
From Slate ● Nov. 5, 2026
Throughout October and up to election day, Wild Up in L.A. has taken the lead in orchestral electoral activism.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026
Hartland, from Machen, Caerphilly county, said his latest release, Wild Bull, was rooted in "being a bit crazy" and the challenges of growing up in the south Wales valleys.
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026
“At this stage,” he says, patting his Wild Horse Nine notebook, “you’re listening to two guys talking and trying to keep up.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026
Tired and hungry, Wild devoured a seal steak as he described their nine hours of searching the coastline.
From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong
The Growing Well Garden in Bow, the Sampford Peverell Tree Wardens in mid-Devon, Shallowford Farm on Dartmoor, and Sustainable Hatherleigh are being recognised for making their communities more eco-friendly, wilder and healthier.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
Things got even wilder once the film went into release: At a preview in California, a jeering audience spotted Warner Bros. executives and chased them out into the street.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
The roles turned out wilder and more varied than he might have expected but his seriousness and sense of fun never faded, pushing boundaries and himself.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
America had its latchkey generation and, along with that, a growing sense that the world is a dangerous place, especially its wilder parts.
From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2026
The more they ran, the wilder they became.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
Six months ago, my wildest dreams consisted entirely of paying off my credit card debt and eating beef once in a while; I am very familiar with the seething rage such articles provoke.
From Slate ● Nov. 1, 2026
It all reduces to the promise of small daily actions that, over time, build into the conquest of your wildest dreams.
From Salon ● Sep. 27, 2026
"Never in my wildest dreams did I think that a solar project would be on my farm," Cargil says.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
But when the Tigers walloped Clemson 51-10 in the most anticipated matchup of college football’s opening weekend, Kiffin reminded the world that he isn’t content with being the craziest sideshow in America’s wildest sport.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
They went to the wilderness to worship, to the wildest mountains, the deepest forests, as if they kept to the customs of an ancient time before men had thought of building houses for their gods.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
Or is there space still wilded enough for fleeting magic in suburban sprawl?
From Salon ● May 10, 2024
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
Every night on Clubhouse, people are just wilding.
From The Verge ● Feb. 1, 2022
I guess dorm parties got old, so they’re wilding out on the subway instead—and were joining them, dammit.
From "They Both Die at the End" by Adam Silvera
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
