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feral

 - 4 dictionary results

fe⋅ral

1  [feer-uhl, fer-]
Use feral in a Sentence
–adjective
1. existing in a natural state, as animals or plants; not domesticated or cultivated; wild.
2. having reverted to the wild state, as from domestication: a pack of feral dogs roaming the woods.
3. of or characteristic of wild animals; ferocious; brutal.
Origin:
1595–1605; < ML, LL ferālis bestial, wild, equiv. to L fer(a) wild beast + -ālis -al 1

fe⋅ral

2  [feer-uhl, fer-]
–adjective
1. causing death; fatal.
2. funereal; gloomy.
Origin:
1615–25; < L fērālis of the dead, funerary, fatal
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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fe·ral   (fîr'əl, fěr'-)   
adj.  

    1. Existing in a wild or untamed state.

    2. Having returned to an untamed state from domestication.

  2. Of or suggestive of a wild animal; savage: a feral grin.


[From Latin fera, wild animal, from ferus, wild; see ghwer- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

feral 
1604, from M.Fr. feral "wild," from L. fera, in phrase fera bestia "wild beast," from ferus "wild" (see fierce).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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