wildcat.
A cat that lives in the wilderness, specifically:
Meaning & usage
A cat that lives in the wilderness, specifically: Felis silvestris, a common small Old World wild cat somewhat larger than a house cat.
A cat that lives in the wilderness, specifically: A bobcat (Lynx rufus) or other similar New World species of lynx.
A cat that lives in the wilderness, specifically: Any feral cat.
A cat that lives in the wilderness, specifically: Alternative spelling of wild cat, any undomesticated felid, as tigers or lions.
A person who acts like a wildcat, (usually) a violent and easily-angered person or a sexually vigorous one.
An offensive formation with an unbalanced line and a snap directly to the running back rather than the quarterback.
A wheel that can be adjusted so as to revolve either with or on the shaft of a capstan.
Clipping of wildcat cartridge.
Clipping of wildcat strike (“a strike undertaken without authorization from the relevant trade union”).
Clipping of wildcat money (“notes issued by a wildcat bank”).
Where this word comes from
From Middle English wyld cat, wylde cat (in the plural as wild cattes, wylde catis, wyle cattes), equivalent to wild + cat. Cognate with Middle Low German wiltkatte, German Wildkatze, Swedish vildkatt. Its adjectival senses were originally American and derived from the "wildcat banks" of Michigan, following its elevation to statehood in 1837. Two laws—one easing the requirements for establishing a new bank and another occasioned by the Panic of 1837 that removed the need for payment in specie—led to the creation and collapse of around 50 banks within two years. The term is apocryphally derived from a wildcat supposedly featured on the currency printed by one of these banks, but more probably derived from the remote locations "where the wildcats roamed" chosen by these banks to avoid oversight and minimize redemption of notes.
Of or concerning businesses operating outside standard or legitimate practice, especially
Of or concerning businesses operating outside standard or legitimate practice, especially: Of or concerning irresponsible banks or banking, (particularly) small, independent operations.
Of or concerning businesses operating outside standard or legitimate practice, especially: Of or concerning oil exploration in new areas, (particularly) small, independent operations.
Of or concerning businesses operating outside standard or legitimate practice, especially: Of or concerning actions undertaken by workers without approval or in defiance of the formal leadership of their trade unions.
Of or concerning customized or hand-made cartridges.
Unauthorized by the proper authorities.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English wyld cat, wylde cat (in the plural as wild cattes, wylde catis, wyle cattes), equivalent to wild + cat. Cognate with Middle Low German wiltkatte, German Wildkatze, Swedish vildkatt. Its adjectival senses were originally American and derived from the "wildcat banks" of Michigan, following its elevation to statehood in 1837. Two laws—one easing the requirements for establishing a new bank and another occasioned by the Panic of 1837 that removed the need for payment in specie—led to the creation and collapse of around 50 banks within two years. The term is apocryphally derived from a wildcat supposedly featured on the currency printed by one of these banks, but more probably derived from the remote locations "where the wildcats roamed" chosen by these banks to avoid oversight and minimize redemption of notes.
To drill for oil in an area where no oil has been found before.
You'd have to be very rich or very desperate to go wildcatting that far east.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English wyld cat, wylde cat (in the plural as wild cattes, wylde catis, wyle cattes), equivalent to wild + cat. Cognate with Middle Low German wiltkatte, German Wildkatze, Swedish vildkatt. Its adjectival senses were originally American and derived from the "wildcat banks" of Michigan, following its elevation to statehood in 1837. Two laws—one easing the requirements for establishing a new bank and another occasioned by the Panic of 1837 that removed the need for payment in specie—led to the creation and collapse of around 50 banks within two years. The term is apocryphally derived from a wildcat supposedly featured on the currency printed by one of these banks, but more probably derived from the remote locations "where the wildcats roamed" chosen by these banks to avoid oversight and minimize redemption of notes.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.