wildcat

noun

1. (UK)A cat that lives in the wilderness, specifically:
2. (US)A cat that lives in the wilderness, specifically:
3. A cat that lives in the wilderness, specifically:
4. (alt-of, alternative, uncommon)A cat that lives in the wilderness, specifically:

   “2003 April 24, CNN Upon checking it out, we found a total of 13 newborn wildcats: nine newborn tigers and two newborn leopards.”

5. (figuratively)A person who acts like a wildcat, (usually) a violent and easily-angered person or a sexually vigorous one.

   “2002 September 26, The Young and the Restless Anyone who's man enough to have landed a wildcat like you had to be quite a guy.”

6. An offensive formation with an unbalanced line and a snap directly to the running back rather than the quarterback.
7. A wheel that can be adjusted so as to revolve either with or on the shaft of a capstan.
8. (abbreviation, alt-of, clipping)Clipping of wildcat cartridge.
9. (abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, uncommon)Clipping of wildcat strike (“a strike undertaken without authorization from the relevant trade union”).
10. (abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, obsolete)Clipping of wildcat money (“notes issued by a wildcat bank”).

adj

1. (derogatory, not-comparable, usually)Of or concerning businesses operating outside standard or legitimate practice, especially

   “Then the development of the home country was neglected for some wildcat idea of bringing up the backward people of other lands.”

   “[…] the Tank being a small arena theatre located out between a traffic analysis firm and a wildcat transistor outfit that hadn't been there last year and wouldn't be this coming but meanwhile was underselling even the Japanese and hauling in loot by the steamshovelful.”

2. (dated, derogatory, not-comparable, usually)Of or concerning businesses operating outside standard or legitimate practice, especially:
3. (derogatory, not-comparable, usually)Of or concerning businesses operating outside standard or legitimate practice, especially:
4. (derogatory, not-comparable, usually)Of or concerning businesses operating outside standard or legitimate practice, especially:
5. (not-comparable)Of or concerning customized or hand-made cartridges.
6. (not-comparable)Unauthorized by the proper authorities.

   “2003 June 15, CNN Jewish settlers have also been active putting up five new wildcat outposts on hilltops in the West Bank to try to thwart their Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.”

verb

1. 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.”

   “His pitch was that fracking had transformed the production of gas from a hit-or-miss proposition to one that operated with an on and off switch. It was manufacturing, not wildcatting.”