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savage

Syllabification: (sav·age)
Pronunciation: /ˈsavij/
Translate savage | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of savage

adjective

  • (of an animal or force of nature) fierce, violent, and uncontrolled:tales of a savage beast a week of savage storms
  • cruel and vicious; aggressively hostile:they launched a savage attack on the budget
  • (chiefly in historical or literary contexts) primitive; uncivilized.
  • (of a place) wild-looking and inhospitable; uncultivated.
  • (of something bad or negative) very great; severe:this would deal a savage blow to the government’s fight

noun

  • (chiefly in historical or literary contexts) a member of a people regarded as primitive and uncivilized.
  • a brutal or vicious person:the mother of one of the victims has described his assailants as savages

verb

[with object]
  • (especially of a dog or wild animal) attack ferociously and maul:ewes savaged by marauding dogs
  • subject to a vicious verbal attack; criticize brutally:Fowler savaged her in his next review

Derivatives

savagely

adverb

savageness

noun

Origin:

Middle English: from Old French sauvage 'wild', from Latin silvaticus 'of the woods', from silva 'a wood'

savage in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of savage in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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