feral

C2+ Topic:Law & Government

US /ˈfɛrəl/ UK /ˈfɛrəl/ See IPA manual

Homophones

ferrule /ˈfɛrəl/

adj

Meanings

1

adj
in a wild state, especially after escaping from domestication

A colony of feral cats lived behind the abandoned warehouse.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · in a wild state, especially... wild untamedundomesticatedsavage brutal

Opposites

tame domesticated domestic

Word family

Derived forms ferallyferality

Related forms ferity ferocious fierce

Etymology

From Latin fera ('wild animal'), from ferus ('wild, untamed'), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰwer- ('wild animal').

ferus Latin *ǵʰwer- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Law & Government Word Formation & Derivatives

# feral

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** ˈfɛrəl
**IPA (UK):** ˈfɛrəl

## Meanings
1. in a wild state, especially after escaping from domestication

## Examples
- A colony of feral cats lived behind the abandoned warehouse.

## Synonyms
- wild
- untamed
- undomesticated
- savage
- brutal

## Antonyms
- tame
- domesticated
- domestic

## Derived Forms
- ferally
- ferality

## Related Forms
- ferity
- ferocious
- fierce

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: ferus
- Root: *ǵʰwer-

## Etymology
From Latin fera ('wild animal'), from ferus ('wild, untamed'), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰwer- ('wild animal').

## AI Etymology
Feral is from Latin fera ('wild animal'), from ferus ('wild, untamed'), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰwer- ('wild animal'). Important recorded forms include ferus (Latin) and *ǵʰwer- (Proto-Indo-European). The current sense covers in a wild state, especially after escaping from domestication. The wider family includes derived forms such as ferally and ferality and related words such as ferity, ferocious, and fierce.

## Topics
- Law & Government
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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feral

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