wild oats

A wild species of oat (Avena fatua)

wild¹ /wīld/

adjective

1. Being in a state of nature, not tamed or cultivated
2. Of an undomesticated or uncultivated kind
3. Uncivilized, savage
4. Desolate, rugged, inhospitable, uninhabitable or uninhabited
5. Tempestuous
6. Violent
7. Fierce
8. Passionate
9. Frantically excited
10. Unrestrained, uncontrolled, out of control
11. Licentious
12. Agitated
13. Shy
14. Distracted, distraught
15. Furious
16. Intensely enthusiastic, eager, keen (with about)
17. Strong and irrational
18. Fantastic
19. Crazy, impracticable
20. Enjoyable, terrific (slang)
21. Disordered, dishevelled
22. Unconsidered, rough, random, approximate
23. Wide of the mark
24. Fresh and natural
25. (with cap) applied to the extreme Evangelical party in the Church of Scotland (historical)
26. (of a playing card) having any value desired

adverb

In a wild manner

noun

1. (also in pl) an uncultivated region
2. A wilderness or desert (also figurative)
3. An empty region of air or water (poetic)
4. (in sing) a wild animal's or plant's natural environment or life in it

wīldˈing noun

1. That which grows wild or without cultivation
2. A wild crab-apple
3. A garden plant self-sown, an escape
4. A wild animal
5. See go wilding below

adjective

Uncultivated or wild

wildˈish adjective

Somewhat wild

wildˈly adverb

wildˈness noun

wild animals plural noun

Undomesticated animals

wild ass noun

Any of several Asiatic or African asses, such as the onager, living naturally in a wild state

wild birds plural noun

Birds not domesticated, esp those protected at certain seasons under the Acts of 1880 onwards

wild boar noun

A wild pig, esp Sus scrofa, from which most domestic pigs are derived

wildˈ-born adjective

Born in the wild

wild card noun

1. A person allowed to compete in a sports event even though lacking the stipulated qualifications, etc
2. (the offering of) such a chance to compete
3. A character that can stand for any other character or group of characters in a file, etc (computing)

wildˈcat noun

1. An undomesticated species of cat (Felis sylvestris) native to Europe
2. Any of various small wild animals of the cat family
3. The skins of these
4. A quick-tempered, fierce person
5. A speculative or unsound financial scheme (US)
6. Someone who takes part in such a scheme (US)
7. An exploratory oil well (US)

adjective

1. (of a business scheme, etc) haphazard, reckless, unsound financially
2. (of a strike) unauthorized by union officials
3. (of an oil well) exploratory (US)

transitive verb and intransitive verb (US)

To drill an experimental well in an area of unknown productivity in search of oil, gas, ore, etc

wildˈcatter noun (US).

wild cherry noun

Any uncultivated tree bearing cherries, such as the gean (Prunus avium), or its fruit

wild child noun (informal)

A young person who enjoys a hedonistic lifestyle

wild dog noun

Any wild species of the dog genus or family, such as the dhole, the dingo, etc

wild duck

See under duck¹

wild-eyedˈ adjective

1. Looking angrily distressed or distracted
2. (of an idea or plan) unrealistic, impracticable

wildˈfire noun

1. A sweeping, destructive fire
2. A needfire
3. Any of various inflammable materials used in warfare, such as Greek fire (historical) (like wildfire extremely fast)
4. Lightning without thunder
5. A disease of sheep
6. Will-o'-the-wisp

wildˈfowl noun

1. The birds of the duck tribe
2. Game birds

wildˈfowler noun

wildˈfowling noun

The pursuit of wildfowl

wild ginger noun

A N American plant (Asarum canadense) whose root is sometimes used as a substitute for ginger

wild goose noun

1. A wild or feral bird of the goose kind
2. A flighty or foolish person
3. (in pl, Wild Geese; historical) Irish Jacobites who migrated to the Continent after the abdication of James II, esp those who joined the French army

wild-goose chase noun

1. A search that is doomed, esp for reasons unknown to the searcher, to be unsuccessful
2. Orig a chase hither and thither of the follow-my-leader kind

wild grape noun

1. A grapevine (Vitis or Muscadinia) in the wild state, or its fruit
2. Coccoloba (see grapetree under grape¹)

wild honey noun

The honey of wild bees

Wild Hunt noun

In Germanic legend, a host of phantoms rushing along, accompanied by the shouting of huntsmen and the baying of dogs

Wild Huntsman noun

The leader of a Wild Hunt

wild hyacinth noun (esp Scot)

The bluebell, Endymion or Scilla nonscriptus

wild indigo noun

Any of several plants of different genera belonging to the same family (Papilionaceae) as indigo, such as an American tumbleweed (Baptisia tinctoria)

wildˈland noun

Land completely uncultivated

wildˈlife noun

Wild animals, birds, etc collectively

wildlife park noun

A safari park containing native or non-native animals

wild man noun

1. Someone uncivilized, a savage (old)
2. A man of extreme or radical views in politics

wild mare noun

1. A seesaw
2. An instrument of punishment, the horse

wild oat noun

Any of several tall perennial weeds related to the cultivated oat, eg Avena fatua

wild olive noun

The oleaster (qv)

wild rice noun see zizania

wild service noun

A tree, Sorbus torminalis, of the same genus as the service tree

wild silk noun

1. Silk from wild silkworms
2. Short-fibred silk imitating this

wild thyme see thyme

wild track noun

A soundtrack recorded independently of a photographic track, but used in editing

wild type noun (biology)

The form of a species typically occurring under natural breeding conditions, as distinct from mutant types

wild water noun

The foaming water in rapids, etc

Wild West noun

The western United States in the days of the first settlers, chiefly cattlemen and goldminers, before the establishment of law and order

Wild-West Show noun

A performance of roping or riding of steers, shooting, etc by (people dressed as) cowboys

wild Williams noun (dialect)

Ragged Robin

wildˈwood noun

Wild uncultivated, or unfrequented, woodland (also adjective)

go wilding (US)

Of a gang of youths, or as a member of such a gang, to attack violently, by beating, robbing and raping

run wild

1. To take to loose living
2. To live or grow in freedom from constraint or control
3. To revert to the wild or uncultivated state

sow one's wild oats see under oat

wild and woolly

1. Unpolished
2. Unrestrained
3. Suggestive of the Wild West, lawless