Etymology From Latin fera (“wild beast”, noun) + -al or Latin ferus (“wild; savage; cruel”, adjective) + -al. Alternatively, borrowed from Middle French féral or Late Latin ferālis.
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Wild; untamed.
1876 Statistical, Descriptive, And Historical Account Of The North-Western Provinces Of India. Allahabad: North-Western Provinces' Government Press 1876. p XIV, Agra Division The spotted deer, in a truly feral state, has very much the same distribution in Bundelkhand as the sambar, but it is more numerous.
Among the ensemble’s strange, outmoded, “original” instruments — the feral horns, sour violins, wooden flutes, cellos without endpins — she seemed right at home, despite her Broadway provenance.2007 July 8, Jesse Green, “Let Her Entertain You. Please!”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 24 Nov 2020:
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Of an animal, wild but descended from domestic or captive ancestors; thus, in the wild, although not necessarily of the wild type.
In this region, the wild boars can be dangerous, but (perhaps counterintuitively) the feral hogs can be even worse.
This subject has been ably treated by several authors, and I shall, in my future work, discuss some of the checks at considerable length, more especially in regard to the feral animals of South America.1859, Charles Darwin, On the Origin of Species:
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The Guinea fowl has become thoroughly feral in Jamaica and in St. Domingo, and has diminished in size; the legs are black, whereas the legs of the aboriginal African bird are said to be grey. This small change is worth notice on account of the often-repeated statement that all feral animals invariably revert in every character to their original type.1884 Charles Darwin The Variation of Animals and Plants Under Domestication 2nd ed 1884 Chapter 8, p. 310
It owes its existence to a feral culture of internet goblins who sentence-mixed the same few janky cutscenes for years.2023 July 13, Harvey Randall, “The internet shitposted too close to the sun, and now we're getting a spiritual successor to the most cursed Zelda games of all time”, in PC Gamer:
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Having the characteristics of an animal; animal-like.
There were about fifty tables and the customers were packed in like black olives in a jar. It was hot and the air was thick with smoke and the sweet, feral smell of two hundred negro bodies.1954, Ian Fleming, “Table Z”, in Live and Let Die, London: Pan Books, published 1957, page 55:
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Of a person, contemptible; unruly; misbehaved.
This consideration doth afford us no small light in conceiving and judging the manners and qualifications of persons, as hath been observed, that those that have impressions of grapes, or signals of vines on their bodies, are addicted to drunkenness, those who have resemblance on their bodies, or in their countenances of a boar, or any feral creature, participate in the same feral, wild and unmannerly deportment; those having any similitude of a hare, are fearful; of a fox, are cunning; of a wolf, cruel; and so of all other resemblances: and, as from these resemblances, the manners are conjectured, so likewise future events, and fortune good or bad, as shall be noted in due place. Nature is strange in many of her operations; but this is most certain, the party retains the qualities of that animal or thing to which he hath a resemblance.1792 The Opinion of Naturalists Concerning the Moles as they are Caused in Women's Pregnancy. The Conjuror's Magazine for August 1792. p.130
Palmistry . . .The figure of a semicircle in the quadrangle of the hand, notes a feral shedder of human blood, an implacable merciless spirit.... Little puncts disorderly in the natural line, shew the worst of manners, and a feral beast-like nature.The Conjuror's Magazine for August 1792. p.137
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Internet Behaving in an out-of-control way due to enthrallment with a certain thought, behavior, person, etc.
Miners fans have been going absolutely feral over you, [and] you're also disgustingly talented. People want you to play for them! You had Canadians bitching about you being American born the first time you played for Team USA.2022 February 15, Stephanie Hoyt, The Magic Between, NineStar Press, →ISBN:
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LifestyleSlang That is a feral character; zoomorphic.
Etymology From Latin fera (“wild beast”, noun) + -al or Latin ferus (“wild; savage; cruel”, adjective) + -al. Alternatively, borrowed from Middle French féral or Late Latin ferālis.
1
A domesticated (non-human) animal that has returned to the wild; an animal, particularly a domesticated animal, living independently of humans.
Although it is not difficult to induce domestic pigeons to nest in boxes fixed to trees, London′s ferals are not yet acclimatized to arboreal holes.1960 May 19, “Notes and Comments: No homes for the pigeons”, in New Scientist, page 1261:
Traffic, abuse, inhumane traps, and accidental poisoning are other hazards ferals must face.[…]In England one gamekeeper claimed to have killed over three hundred ferals, while another brought home pelts to his wife so that she could design rugs from cat skins as a source of secondary income.2005, Alexandra Powe Allred, Cats' Most Wanted: The Top 10 Book of Mysterious Mousers, Talented Tabbies, and Feline Oddities, unnumbered page:
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You trap ferals, neuter them, and give them their rabies shot. Maybe distemper.2007, Clea Simon, Cries and Whiskers, page 26:
If you′ve ever put a saucer of milk out for a hard-luck kitty, or if you′re spending your lunch hour sharing sandwiches with the ferals near your office, this is the chapter for you.2011, Gina Spadafori, Paul D. Pion, Cats for Dummies, unnumbered page:
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Australia, Colloquial A contemptible young person, a lout, a person who behaves wildly.
3
Australia, Colloquial A person who has isolated themselves from the outside world; one living an alternative lifestyle.
The intolerance which was directed towards us during the early years has now shifted to ‘the ferals’ who embrace a new version of nonconformist behaviour that even some of us in their parent′s generation — the Aquarian settlers — don′t like. The ferals are the scapegoats for the drug problems here, and are highly visible since many of them have nowhere to live.1995, Bill Metcalf, From Utopian Dreaming to Communal Reality: Cooperative Lifestyles in Australia, page 82:
A pod of ferals was moving towards the exit, a half-dozen soap-shy, low-tech, bush-dwelling hippies.2002, Shane Maloney, Something Fishy, published 2003, page 208:
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It′s the rootlessness of the ferals that people don′t seem to trust; their claims of connectedness to all wild places touches a nerve. Even residents of Maydena who want to see the Florentine protected dislike the ratbags′ itinerancy.2010, Anna Krien, Into The Woods: The Battle For Tasmania's Forests, page 102:
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LifestyleSlang A furry character in art or literature which has the appearance of a regular animal (typically quadrupedal), that may or may not be able to communicate with humans or "anthros".
The story is about a group of ferals which have to explore the ruins of society after the humans die out.
feral
adj
Etymology From Latin fērālis (“funereal”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰéh₁s (“god, sacred place”).