wild card
noun
1
: an unknown or unpredictable factor
2
: one picked to fill a leftover playoff or tournament berth after regularly qualifying competitors have all been determined
3
usually wildcard
: a symbol (such as ? or *) used in a keyword database search to represent the presence of zero, one, or more than one unspecified characters
Examples of wild card in a Sentence
The joker is a wild card.
Taxes are the wild card in this election.
The team made it into the play-offs as the wild card.
Recent Examples on the Web
Cheered on by a large contingent of Haitian fans, former No. 1 Naomi Osaka rallied from 2-4 down in the third set to defeat wild card Hailey Baptiste 7-6 (8-6), 3-6, 6-4, and advance to the Miami Open Round of 16 for the first time since 2022.
—
Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 23 Mar. 2025
So you're all geared up for the big lunar eclipse Thursday night, but there's one wild card: Where will the weather interfere with your viewing pleasure?
—Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 12 Mar. 2025
Then a 4-game Eastern road trip against teams battling for a wild card spot before returning home over March Madness opening weekend against the Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings and Tampa Bay Lighting.
—Jay Ginsbach, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
Having Mikael Granlund and Patrik Laine serve as wild cards who moved around the lineup might need to be reconsidered.
—Arpon Basu, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for wild card
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Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 23 Mar. 2025
So you're all geared up for the big lunar eclipse Thursday night, but there's one wild card: Where will the weather interfere with your viewing pleasure?
—Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 12 Mar. 2025
Then a 4-game Eastern road trip against teams battling for a wild card spot before returning home over March Madness opening weekend against the Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings and Tampa Bay Lighting.
—Jay Ginsbach, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
Having Mikael Granlund and Patrik Laine serve as wild cards who moved around the lineup might need to be reconsidered.
—Arpon Basu, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for wild card
Cite this Entry
“Wild card.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wild%20card. Accessed 28 Mar. 2025.
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