the wild
noun
: a wild, free, or natural place, state, or existence
The plants were collected from the wild.
They will return the animal to the wild when it is healthy.
I've only seen that animal in a zoo, never in the wild.
Examples of the wild in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Never mind that the wild success of Grapes led to the shelving of Babb’s own novel about the Dust Bowl crisis.
—
Boris Kachka, The Atlantic, 18 Oct. 2024
The team also observed that the bacterium does engage in this behavior in the wild, but only does so when natural nutrients become scarce.
—Michael Irving, New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2024
Bottlenose dolphins have a long lifespan — at least 40 years in the wild — with some populations staying in the same areas year-round.
—Taylor Nicioli, CNN, 17 Oct. 2024
Their numbers in the wild are in decline, and breeding areas are threatened.
—Karen Kucher, The Mercury News, 13 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for the wild 
Boris Kachka, The Atlantic, 18 Oct. 2024
The team also observed that the bacterium does engage in this behavior in the wild, but only does so when natural nutrients become scarce.
—Michael Irving, New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2024
Bottlenose dolphins have a long lifespan — at least 40 years in the wild — with some populations staying in the same areas year-round.
—Taylor Nicioli, CNN, 17 Oct. 2024
Their numbers in the wild are in decline, and breeding areas are threatened.
—Karen Kucher, The Mercury News, 13 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for the wild
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'the wild.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“The wild.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/the%20wild. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.
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