Wildcat
English Meaning
Unsound; worthless; irresponsible; unsafe; -- said to have been originally applied to the notes of an insolvent bank in Michigan upon which there was the figure of a panther.
- Any of various wild felines of small to medium size, especially of the genus Lynx, including the bobcat and the caracal.
- Either of two small felines (Felis silvestris subsp. silvestris or subsp. lybica) of Europe, Asia, and Africa, often regarded as being the ancestor of the domestic cat.
- A quick-tempered person.
- A person regarded as fierce.
- An oil or natural-gas well drilled in an area not known to be productive.
- A workers' strike unauthorized by their union.
- Risky or unsound, especially financially.
- Issued by a financially irresponsible bank: wildcat currency.
- Operating or accomplished outside the norms of standard, ethical business procedures: wildcat life insurance schemes.
- Of, relating to, or being an oil or natural-gas well drilled speculatively in an area not known to be productive.
- Undertaken by workers without approval of the officials of their union: a wildcat strike.
- To prospect for (oil, for example) in an area supposed to be unproductive.
- To prospect for oil or other minerals in an area not known to be productive.
- To go out on an unauthorized labor strike.