Saturday, April 6, 2013

A to Z Challenge 2013: F - Feral

Feral

fe·ral [fi(ə)rəl] adj. - (esp. of an animal) In a wild state, esp. after escape from captivity or domestication: "a feral cat".

Synonyms: ferine, savage

Etymology: c.1600, from Middle French feral "wild," from Latin fera, in phrase fera bestia "wild animal," from ferus "wild" (see fierce).

Or, if you're playing Fallout 3, this could be a person who was ghoulified by radiation.

33 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I always think cat when I see that word.
Fallout 3 rocks!

Sally said...

I always think of feral cats on farms whose litters have to be disposed of.

Natalie Aguirre said...

I'm like Alex and Sally. Cats come to mind. Enjoy your day off from this.

Catch My Words said...

Hmm. How about a feral blogger? That would be a fun site to visit.

http://joycelansky.blogspot.com

DL Hammons said...

Like kids leaving home for the first time and heading off to college! Man was I ever Feral!! :)

Marti said...

The neighborhood kids fight like feral cats! Somebody is going to end up in a body bag! Visiting from A-Z

mshatch said...

Ha! I remember those ghouls!

farawayeyes said...

Now you're talking. Here's a word that OFTEN describes me.

Elise Fallson said...

meow.
purr.
hiss.
scratch.
bleed.
ouch.

:P

M Pax said...

I really like the word feral. Happy F!

Sheena-kay Graham said...

Feral makes me think of the feral children found in the wild.

A Daft Scots Lass said...

I also think of a cat when I see this word.

Andrew Leon said...

I think of children.

Unknown said...

definitely cats and small children...dirty, sticky, sweaty small children.

here's my F post
http://smhasty.blogspot.com/2013/04/26-books-that-changed-my-life-6.html

cleemckenzie said...

Feral is a word we use around here a lot. At one time I was caring for four feral cats and trying to domesticate them. I succeed with three. Not bad.

Unknown said...

I always thought this was an interesting word. Especially because you could conceivably switch the vowels and pronounce it the same way-- Farel.

Jaimie
Living in the Light
A to Z Ambassador

Leslie S. Rose said...

I had a cat who misunderstood the difference between domesticated and feral. I still have the scratch scars to prove it.

Kristen said...

I've used that term many times lately, having had to get a feral cat trap to catch three feral cats.

From A to Z, Kristen's blog: kristenhead.blogspot.com

D.E. Malone said...

I knew someone with that last name. Spelled it like Will Ferrell though. Totally fit him. Scary dude.

Rhonda Albom said...

Is feral not a commonly used word where you live? It is here in New Zealand, and generally to describe cats.

Rhonda @Laugh-Quotes.com
AtoZ #42

Kellie @ Delightfully Ludicrous said...

LOL! In Australia it's often used to describe a person of a lower socio-economic standing who seems a bit "rough".

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

LOL - I was just about to write the same comment as Kellie @Delightfully Ludicrous! When I saw the title of this post, I immediately regressed to my Australian childhood and the not-so-nice use of this word!!

http://www.mydestinationunknown.com
A to Z Participant

Lady's Knight said...

Ghoulifed by radiation works
better than getting rabies

ha
A to Z and creativity rocks

Jason "J-Ryze" Fonceca said...

Hahahaha! Fallout commandeers the word Feral.

So great.

I enjoy this refresh word/etymology posts, thanks Matthew!

And interestingly, my post for 'E' was all about animalistic behavior :)

Nancy Thompson said...

Ghoulified by radiation?!! ME-OW!

Lyre said...

Interesting word choice for today! I must admit that I tend to think more of feral children, but from a psychological perspective.

The Fallout 3 tidbit was a nice add-on, though. :-)

Lyre at Lyre's Musings

Unknown said...

Where do you come up with these words? You are like the master ninja of vocabulary.

MunirGhiasuddin said...

I hated starting my car when there were feral cats sleeping under it.

Unknown said...

Awesome word!!

Tina said...

We have feral cats all over our neighborhood who stalk our compost. The current alpha-cat we have nicknamed "Compost" because he/she likes to sit on the compost pile and not let anyone else onto it...
Tina @ Life is Good
Co-host, April 2013 A-Z Challenge Blog
@TinaLifeisGood, #atozchallenge

Joanne R. Fritz said...

What a great word! Wonder why everyone thinks of feral cats and never feral dogs.

Michelle Wallace said...

Feral even sounds raw and gritty... just like the meaning!

Writer In Transit