I. wild 1 S2 W2 /waɪld/ BrE AmE adjective
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ wild , ↑ wildness ; adverb : ↑ wildly , ↑ wild ; adjective : ↑ wild ]
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: wilde ]
1 . PLANTS/ANIMALS [usually before noun] living in a natural state, not changed or controlled by people OPP tame :
wild animals
a field full of wild flowers
wild horse/dog/pig etc
animals both wild and domesticated
wild mushroom/garlic/rose etc
2 . LAND not used by people for farming, building etc:
Nepal is stunning, with its wild, untamed landscape.
the wild and lonely Scottish hills
3 . EMOTIONS feeling or expressing strong uncontrolled emotions, especially anger, happiness, or excitement:
wild laughter
wild with
He was wild with rage.
4 . BEHAVIOUR behaving in an uncontrolled, sometimes violent way:
She was completely wild in high school.
Donny could be wild and crazy.
There was a wild look about her (=she seemed a little crazy) .
5 . go wild
a) to behave in a very excited uncontrolled way:
The crowd went wild as soon as the singer stepped onto the stage.
b) to get very angry:
When Tony heard how much it was going to cost, he just went wild.
6 . ENJOYABLE informal very enjoyable and exciting:
‘How was the party?’ ‘It was wild!’
7 . be wild about something/somebody informal to like something or someone very much:
My son’s wild about football.
I’m not that wild about rap music, to be honest.
8 . WITHOUT CAREFUL THOUGHT done or said without much thought or care, or without knowing all the facts:
wild accusations
I’m just making a wild guess here, so correct me if I’m wrong.
9 . beyond sb’s wildest dreams beyond anything that someone imagined or hoped for:
an invention that was to change our lives beyond our wildest dreams
10 . not/never in your wildest dreams used to say that you did not expect or imagine that something would happen, especially after it has happened:
Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to win first place.
11 . WEATHER/SEA violent and strong:
a wild and angry sea
12 . CARD GAMES a card that is wild can be used to represent any other card in a game
13 . wild horses would/could not ... used to say that someone is determined not to go somewhere, do something etc:
Wild horses would not have dragged him into a vegetarian restaurant.
—wildness noun [uncountable]
⇨ ↑ wild card , ⇨ sow your wild oats at ↑ sow 1 (3)
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ natural existing in nature and not caused, made, or controlled by people:
a natural lake
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natural light
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the earth's natural resources
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We only use natural ingredients in our products.
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his natural hair colour
▪ wild used about flowers, plants, and animals that are not controlled by people. Also used about areas of land where there are no humans:
We found some wild strawberries.
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wild horses
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wild open spaces
▪ pure used about food, drink, or materials that have not had anything added to them:
pure orange juice
|
pure new wool
▪ organic used about fruit, vegetables, meat etc produced without using chemicals:
organic carrots
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organic milk
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organic beauty products
▪ unspoiled ( also unspoilt British English ) a place that is unspoiled is still beautiful because no one has built roads or buildings on it:
It was a pleasant unspoilt village.
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The countryside is remarkably unspoiled.
▪ untouched [not before noun] a place that is untouched has not been affected by human activity:
There are few forested areas of the world that remain untouched by humans.
▪ virgin [only before noun] virgin forest or land is still in its natural state and has not been spoiled or changed in any way by humans:
Large areas of virgin rainforest will be protected from destruction.
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He bought 14,000 acres of virgin land in Ontario.
II. wild 2 BrE AmE adverb
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ wild , ↑ wildness ; adverb : ↑ wildly , ↑ wild ; adjective : ↑ wild ]
1 . run wild
a) if children or animals run wild, they behave in an uncontrolled way because there is no one to control them
b) if something runs wild, it is not controlled and operates in an extremely free way:
Be creative – allow your imagination to run wild.
c) if plants run wild, they grow a lot in an uncontrolled way
2 . grow wild if plants grow wild somewhere, they have not been planted by people
III. wild 3 BrE AmE noun
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ wild , ↑ wildness ; adverb : ↑ wildly , ↑ wild ; adjective : ↑ wild ]
1 . in the wild in natural and free conditions, not kept or controlled by people:
There are very few pandas living in the wild now.
2 . the wilds of Africa/Alaska etc areas where there are no towns and not many people live