■ noun
1》 an uncultivated, uninhabited, and inhospitable region.
↘a neglected or abandoned area.
2》 a position of disfavour.
Phrases
a voice in the ~ an unheeded advocate of reform (see Matt. 3:3 etc.).
Origin
OE wildēornes 'land inhabited only by wild animals', from wild dēor 'wild deer' + -ness .