wild

/waɪld/

//waɪld// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"wild" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“wild” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #1,679 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#1,679
frequency rank, English
4
letters
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Untamed; not domesticated.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

wild vs WL
0% similar
wild vs win
50% similar
wild vs wit
50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for wild
PropertyValue
Headwordwild
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/waɪld/
Letters4
Frequency rank#1,679
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “wild” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). wild lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for wild is 4 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /waɪld/. Corpus data places it at rank #1,679 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 18 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for wild, with forms such as "iwld", "widl", and "wildd". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "WL", "win", "wit", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English wild, wilde, from Old English wilde, from Proto-West Germanic *wilþī, from Proto-Germanic *wilþijaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂welh₁- (“hair, wool, grass, ear (of corn), forest”). Cognates Cognate with West Frisian wyld, Dutch wild, Ge… The correct English form is wild, spelled W-I-L-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    Untamed; not domesticated.
  2. 2
    Untamed; not domesticated.
  3. 3
    From or relating to wild creatures.
  4. 4
    Unrestrained or uninhibited.
  5. 5
    Raucous, unruly, or licentious.
  6. 6
    Of unregulated and varying frequency.
  7. 7
    Visibly and overtly anxious; frantic.
  8. 8
    Furious; very angry.
  9. 9
    Disheveled, tangled, or untidy.
  10. 10
    Enthusiastic.
  11. 11
    Very inaccurate; far off the mark.
  12. 12
    Exposed to the wind and sea; unsheltered.
  13. 13
    Hard to steer.
  14. 14
    Not capable of being represented as a finite closed polygonal chain.
  15. 15
    Amazing, awesome, unbelievable.
  16. 16
    Very unexpected; wildly surprising; crazy, diabolical.
  17. 17
    Able to stand in for others, e.g. a card in games, or a text character in computer pattern matching.
  18. 18
    Of an audio recording: intended to be synchronized with film or video but recorded separately.

Etymology

From Middle English wild, wilde, from Old English wilde, from Proto-West Germanic *wilþī, from Proto-Germanic *wilþijaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂welh₁- (“hair, wool, grass, ear (of corn), forest”). Cognates Cognate with West Frisian wyld, Dutch wild, German wild, Danish vild, Swedish vild, Norwegian vill, Icelandic villtur.

Synonyms

feralferineindomitesavagetamelessuplandishuntameuntamedwild

Antonyms

brokendociledomesticatedtame

This word in other languages

salvaje(Español)sauvage(Français)wild(Deutsch)silvestre(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: iwld,widl,wildd,willd,wlid,wwild

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of wild - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

iwld2widl2wildd1willd1wlid2wwild1
Edit distance from "wild"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "wild"?
"wild" is spelled W-I-L-D. The IPA pronunciation is /waɪld/.
What does "wild" mean?
As an adjective, "wild" means: Untamed; not domesticated.
What words are commonly confused with "wild"?
"wild" is commonly confused with "WL", "win", "wit". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "wild"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "wild" is /waɪld/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "wild"?
From Middle English wild, wilde, from Old English wilde, from Proto-West Germanic *wilþī, from Proto-Germanic *wilþijaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂welh₁- (“hair, wool, grass, ear (of corn), forest”). Cognates Cognate with West Frisian wyld, Dutc... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “wild”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is W-I-L-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /waɪld/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “WL” - see the side-by-side comparison. wild vs WL
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list