wild
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wild (wīld)
adjective
- living or growing in its original, natural state and not normally domesticated or cultivated wild flowers, wild animals
- not lived in or cultivated; overgrown, waste, etc. wild land
- not civilized; savage a wild tribe
- not easily restrained or regulated; not controlled or controllable; unruly, rough, lawless, etc. wild children
- characterized by a lack of social or moral restraint; unbridled in pursuing pleasure; dissolute, orgiastic, etc. a wild rake, a wild party
- violently disturbed; turbulent; stormy a wild seacoast
- in a state of intense excitement; specif.,
- eager or enthusiastic, as with desire or anticipation wild with delight
- angered, frenzied, frantic, crazed, etc. wild with desperation
- in a state of disorder, disarrangement, confusion, etc. wild hair
- fantastically impractical; visionary a wild scheme
- showing a lack of sound judgment; reckless; imprudent a wild wager
- going wide of the mark aimed at; missing the target a wild swing in boxing
- Slang extraordinary; remarkable a wild success
- Card Games having any value specified by the holder: said of a card deuces, when wild in poker, may be counted as aces, kings, etc.
Etymology: ME wilde < OE, akin to Ger wild, prob. < IE base *wel-, shaggy hair, unkempt > wool, vole
adverb
noun
run wild
the wild
Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Alternate definitions:
wild
modif.
Not controlled
unrestrained, unmanageable, boisterous; see disorderly 1, unruly.Uncivilized
Not cultivated
luxuriant, lush, exuberant, dense, excessive, desolate, waste, desert, weedy, untrimmed, impenetrable, uninhabited, native, natural, untouched, virgin, overgrown, uncultivated, untilled, uncared for, neglected, overrun, free, rampant, untamed. Undomesticated
Inaccurate
Stormy
Excited
Dissolute
unbridled, loose, licentious, profligate, orgiastic; see also lewd 2.Imprudent
reckless, foolish, incautious; see careless 1, rash.
run wild
Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Modifying Another Word
- truly: Charnwood Lodge remains one of the last truly wild areas in the Forest.
Converse of object
- explore: In contrast, you could explore the wilds of Exmoor National Park.
Adjective complement with noun phrase
- drive: Angie Brown drove the crowd wild and got festival goers to their feet dancing under the beautiful sunshine.
Modifies a noun
- boar: Despite numerous signs of wild boar, we failed to find any.
Used with adjective complement
- grow: Around one hundred of these remarkable trees, ' living fossils ' , are known to be growing wild.
The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.
A Walk on the Wild Side.
Now the great winds shorewards blow; Now the salt tides seawards flow; Now the wild white horses play, Champ and chafe and toss in the spray.
Yes! in the sea of life enisled, With echoing straits between us thrown, Dotting the shoreless watery wild, We mortal millions live alone.
Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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Cite this page:
MLA Style
"wild." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009
- Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
- <www.yourdictionary.com/wild>
APA Style
wild. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary
- Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/wild
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