undomesticated

adjective

un·​do·​mes·​ti·​cat·​ed ən-də-ˈme-sti-ˌkā-təd How to pronounce undomesticated (audio)
: not domesticated
an undomesticated plant
undomesticated relatives of the house cat

Examples of undomesticated in a Sentence

domesticated rats are more tolerable companions than are their undomesticated cousins
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
According to the team, the study could contribute to shifting welfare standards for all species of cats, whether they are domesticated or undomesticated, tame or wild. Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 15 Feb. 2024 Fowler was the one left to wrestle undomesticated animals while Perkins looked on from a safe distance. Edward M. Eveld, Kansas City Star, 25 Jan. 2024 Results showed that Rock Doves and feral pigeons descended from the same undomesticated pigeon lineage. Monica Cull, Discover Magazine, 1 July 2022 California has outlawed the sale of new items made from the fur of undomesticated animals, including mink, rabbit and coyote. Los Angeles Times, 30 Dec. 2022 Gallus gallus, the undomesticated ancestor of modern chickens , have come to dominate American dinner tables, where its meat is consumed at a rate of 80 pounds per person per year. Sarah Zhang, Discover Magazine, 24 May 2012 These undomesticated strains appear at harvest time, when farmers select their tamer, more pampered kin for replanting. Helen Sullivan, The New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2021 In some locations this would have set up a scenario in which domestic escapees likely swapped genes with their undomesticated ancestors, potentially diluting or even, in a slightly Oedipal turn, eliminating truly wild cannabis. Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 July 2021 Eisen, an avid birder, likens this database to a first draft of a field guide for Earth’s undomesticated microbes. Monique Brouillette, Wired, 18 Dec. 2020

Word History

First Known Use

1834, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of undomesticated was in 1834

Dictionary Entries Near undomesticated

Cite this Entry

“Undomesticated.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/undomesticated. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!