wilderness

noun

wil·​der·​ness ˈwil-dər-nəs 

1

a(1)

: a tract or region uncultivated and uninhabited by human beings

(2)

: an area essentially undisturbed by human activity together with its naturally developed life community

b

: an empty or pathless area or region

… in remote wildernesses of space groups of nebulae are found …

—George W. Gray †1960

c

: a part of a garden devoted to wild growth

2

obsolete : wild or uncultivated state

3

a

: a confusing multitude or mass : an indefinitely great number or quantity

… I would not have given it for a wilderness of monkeys.

—William Shakespeare

b

: a bewildering situation

… those moral wildernesses of civilized life …

—Norman Mailer

Synonyms of wilderness

• wild
• desert
• country
• outdoors

Examples of wilderness in a Sentence

She enjoys hikes through the wilderness.

released the wolf back into the wilderness

Recent Examples on the Web

Around me, passengers of all ages from Germany, the United States, England, and Turkey were crammed into booths, making friends, sharing boxes of pistachio pastries, and admiring the wilderness, where gusts of snow swept toward the window and obscured the scalps of mountains. —Monisha Rajesh, Outside, 9 Dec. 2025

In the series premiere, a prison transport plane crashed in the wilderness, sending dozens of fugitives scattering into the snow and forcing Frank to hunt them while uncovering a deeper conspiracy involving rogue CIA agents and a covert assassination program known as the Atwater Protocol. —Jp Mangalindan, Time, 5 Dec. 2025

Prior to getting to Twin Falls County, the pair had gone north to the Lewiston area and the surrounding wilderness, which is where the killings of Mauney and Henderson took place. —Shannon Tyler, Idaho Statesman, 5 Dec. 2025

For travelers drawn to the ends of the earth, Patagonia offers a raw, dramatic expanse of wilderness split between Chile and Argentina. —Eric Sheets, Travel + Leisure, 5 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from wildern wild, from Old English wilddēoren of wild beasts

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Phrases Containing wilderness

• wilderness area

Kids Definition

wilderness

noun

wil·​der·​ness ˈwil-dər-nəs 

: an area in which few people live that is not used for farming and is more or less in its natural state