wild

adjective

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\ ˈwī(-ə)ld

Definition of wild

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : living in a state of nature and not ordinarily tame or domesticated wild ducks

b(1) : growing or produced without human aid or care wild honey

(2) : related to or resembling a corresponding cultivated or domesticated organism

c : of or relating to wild organisms the wild state

2a : not inhabited or cultivated wild land

b : not amenable to human habitation or cultivation also : desolate

3a(1) : not subject to restraint or regulation : uncontrolled also : unruly

(2) : emotionally overcome wild with grief also : passionately eager or enthusiastic was wild to own a toy train — J. C. Furnas

b : marked by turbulent agitation : stormy a wild night

c : going beyond normal or conventional bounds : fantastic wild ideas also : sensational

d : indicative of strong passion, desire, or emotion a wild gleam of delight in his eyes — Irish Digest

4 : uncivilized, barbaric

5 : characteristic of, appropriate to, or expressive of wilderness, wildlife, or a simple or uncivilized society

6a : deviating from the intended or expected course wild spelling— C. W. Cunnington the throw was wild also : tending to throw inaccurately a wild pitcher

b : having no basis in known or surmised fact a wild guess

7 of a playing card : able to represent any card designated by the holder

wild

noun

Definition of wild (Entry 2 of 3)

1 : a sparsely inhabited or uncultivated region or tract : wilderness

2 : a wild, free, or natural state or existence

wild

adverb

Definition of wild (Entry 3 of 3)

: in a wild manner: such as

a : without regulation or control plants that grow wild

b : off an intended or expected course

Other Words from wild Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about wild

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Examples of wild in a Sentence

Adjective wild places high in the mountains I felt a wild rage. He was wild with anger. The crowd went wild when the band took the stage. Noun They hiked through the wilds of Maine. The plants were collected from the wild. They will return the animal to the wild when it is healthy. Could these animals survive in the wild? I've only seen that animal in a zoo, never in the wild. Adverb These plants grow wild on the roadside. as soon as the doors opened, early-morning bargain hunters ran wild through the store

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective The rock art includes carvings of mountain goats, antelopes and wild cows. — Fox News, "Mysterious rock art discovered in megalithic tombs in Israel," 14 July 2020 At the Seafood Center on Clement Street, for example, wild king salmon from Half Moon Bay recently cost $24.99 per pound. — Justin Phillips, SFChronicle.com, "Bay Area salmon season is in full swing for home cooks but uncertain for fishers," 13 July 2020 The two-way standout, who was unable to pitch because of Tommy John surgery last season, walked seven and threw six wild pitches in three innings of his first intrasquad start last week. — Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, "Angels’ Shohei Ohtani shows improvement in second training camp start," 13 July 2020 The internet went wild over the news as users were filled with nostalgia. — Natasha Reda, Glamour, "Supermarket Sweep Is on Netflix and Fans Are Going Wild With Nostalgia," 12 July 2020 In the bottom of the 10th, Demarcus Evans wild pitched home the tying run. — Dallas News, "MLB’s new extra-inning rule presents Rangers with unique chances and challenges," 12 July 2020 Folks quickly went wild over one of its first launches: the Box of Crayons iShadow Palette, which includes 18 colorful shadows encased in packaging that mimics a traditional box of crayons. — Kaleigh Fasanella, Allure, "The Crayon Case Is Launching a New Palette Called The Blush Binder, and We're Already Obsessed," 12 July 2020 At the same time, the department applied to federal fish managers for permits to take wild spring salmon from the upper Clackamas River's healthy wild run and use the eggs for hatchery stock. — oregonlive, "Bill Monroe: Reeling in a first-ever salmon on the Columbia River," 11 July 2020 Traveling to the antipodes may not be easy, but the best resorts in Australia and New Zealand — always bucolic, sometimes wild — are worth the long-haul flight. — Chloe Sachdev, Travel + Leisure, "The Top 5 Resort Hotels in Australia and New Zealand," 8 July 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun There are estimated to be about 160 Indochinese tigers left in the wild in Thailand. — Washington Post, "Rare tigers in Thailand spotted for first time in four years," 29 July 2020 Oyra's genetic lines are considered valuable because her mother, Dshamilja, was born in the wild and was part of the European Endangered Species Programme. — Genevieve Redsten, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Milwaukee County Zoo announces the birth of a female snow leopard cub," 11 July 2020 The Houston Zoo tenrecs will serve as ambassador animals, helping to educate guests on the importance of saving their counterparts in the wild. — Marcy De Luna, Houston Chronicle, "Houston Zoo welcome three baby hedgehog tenrecs," 9 July 2020 In the early 1980s, all 22 birds remaining in the wild were trapped and brought into a captive-breeding program that began releasing condors into Southern California's Los Padres National Forest in 1992. — Arlene Martinez, USA TODAY, "In CA: California condors make a comeback; Christopher Columbus gets the boot," 8 July 2020 Each condor, both born in captivity and in the wild, has been closely tracked ever since. — Sophie Lewis, CBS News, "Endangered California condors spotted in Sequoia National Park for the first time in nearly 50 years," 8 July 2020 Klett identifies our messy paradox, the human desire to lose ourselves in the wild and also to extract, despoil, and package it. — Cheri Lucas Rowlands, Longreads, "“I Saw It on Instagram, I Had to Come”: The Desire to Document Ourselves in Nature," 7 July 2020 Both advisories indicate that there's no evidence of the flaw being actively exploited in the wild. — Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, "Unscheduled fixes released for critical flaw in optional Windows codec," 1 July 2020 Diego, who weighs around 175 pounds, is a Chelonoidis hoodensis, a species only found in the wild on the island. — Fox News, "Diego the tortoise, famous for saving species with his high sex drive, starts retirement," 17 June 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb Of course, Devi hopes Robyn's bittersweet dance song won't be her high school anthem since this straight A student has got her sights set on the hottest boy in school Paxton Hall-Yoshida (Darren Barnet), who has moms going wild too, FYI. — Shannon Carlin, refinery29.com, "Every Song In Never Have I Ever Will Make You Feel Sixteen Again (In A Good Way)," 28 Apr. 2020 The Brewers headed into the week of July 7 at 3½ games behind the Chicago Cubs for first place, a percentage point behind St. Louis for second and essentially tied with the Cardinals for the National League wild-card spot. — Jr Radcliffe, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "50 in 50: The Brewers land CC Sabathia in a blockbuster 2008 trade," 29 Apr. 2020 Theorists have been going wild coming up with theories to explain an anomalous muon, so the conclusion of the saga will leave many physicists melancholic. — Davide Castelvecchi, Scientific American, "How Big Is the Proton? Particle-Size Puzzle Leaps Closer to Resolution," 11 Nov. 2019 What would have been last year’s third AFC wild-card representative was less impressive, the 8-8 Steelers. — Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, "A case for expanding the NFL playoffs," 22 Feb. 2020 Williams wound up making 13 appearances over two separate stints for Milwaukee – all of them important as the Brewers were fighting their way toward the second National League wild-card playoff spot. — Todd Rosiak, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "After debuting with the Brewers in 2019, Devin Williams is attempting to stick in 2020," 21 Feb. 2020 Escobar went 2-for-4 for Minnesota in the 2017 American League wild-card game. — Greg Moore, azcentral, "Madison Bumgarner deal looks good for Diamondbacks, but it comes with very real concerns," 16 Dec. 2019 And as the buzzer sounded, the Lucas Oil Stadium crowd went wild: The Bluegrass State Battle was on. — Ryan Ford, Detroit Free Press, "The 2020 NCAA tournament that could have been: Return to Elite status for Michigan State?," 21 Mar. 2020 Bewildered people, unsure what else to do after spotting the primates running wild, called the police, as well as in to a local radio show, much to the amusement of host Ben Fordham who tweeted the escapade. — Melissa Locker, Time, "Today in Monkey Business, Let's Follow the Escapades of This Trio of Baboons Who Escaped," 25 Feb. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'wild.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.