wild card

noun

1
: an unknown or unpredictable factor
2
: one picked to fill a leftover playoff or tournament berth after regularly qualifying competitors have all been determined
3
usually wildcard : a symbol (such as ? or *) used in a keyword database search to represent the presence of zero, one, or more than one unspecified characters

Examples of wild card in a Sentence

The joker is a wild card. Taxes are the wild card in this election. The team made it into the play-offs as the wild card.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Williams entered the Citi Open on a wild card, after not playing on the WTA Tour since March 2024. Jasmine Laws, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 July 2025 The Braves are fourth in the NL East, 13 1/2 games back, after winning six consecutive division titles through 2023 and getting in the postseason as a wild card last year. David O'Brien, New York Times, 23 July 2025 That leaves Woodson, a heady, 24-year-old rookie who played all across the secondary in college, as a wild card. Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 22 July 2025 There’s still a chance the Dolphins can beat out the Chargers, Denver, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, New England and maybe the Colts for one of three wild card spots. Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 21 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for wild card

Word History

Etymology

wild card, playing card with arbitrarily determined value

First Known Use

1971, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of wild card was in 1971

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Wild card.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wild%20card. Accessed 26 Jul. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on wild card

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!