1
2
: wild, uncultivated
Seldom have I seen such savage scenery …—
Douglas Carruthers
Douglas Carruthers
4
old-fashioned + offensive : lacking complex or advanced culture : uncivilized
savagely adverb
savageness noun
plural savages
1
old-fashioned + offensive : a person belonging to a primitive society
2
: a brutal person
3
: a rude or unmannerly person
Examples of savage in a Sentence
Adjective He was the victim of a savage attack. The coast was lashed by savage storms. He wrote savage satires about people he didn't like. Noun What kind of savage could have committed such a terrible crime? what kind of savage would hurt a baby? Verb He looked like he'd been savaged by a wild animal. A hurricane savaged the city. The newspapers savaged his reputation.
Recent Examples on the Web
Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 20 Apr. 2026 The famed African American journalist investigated lynchings across the South and wrote about the savage incidents that the white press had already explained away. —Case Thorp, The Orlando Sentinel, 5 Apr. 2026
Matt Donnelly, Variety, 23 Apr. 2026 One answer would be that the more savage the storm, the more urgent the need for safe havens. —Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 13 Apr. 2026
Helen Branswell, STAT, 30 Mar. 2026 We’ve been dealt a nigh-unbearable hand when two of our communities were utterly savaged by fire. —Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for savage
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Adjective
This time playing an underling rather than a boss, Hoskins gave one of the best performances of his career in what remains a high point for Jordan as well, a lyrical and poignant yet savage film noir filled with regret, rage, and unrequited love. —Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 20 Apr. 2026 The famed African American journalist investigated lynchings across the South and wrote about the savage incidents that the white press had already explained away. —Case Thorp, The Orlando Sentinel, 5 Apr. 2026
Noun
Streep’s beloved ice queen portrayal wasn’t as savage as the book, where the character was a British dictator in designer glasses. —Matt Donnelly, Variety, 23 Apr. 2026 One answer would be that the more savage the storm, the more urgent the need for safe havens. —Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 13 Apr. 2026
Verb
Chronic disease programs, in particular, have been savaged, whether those programs have been focused on oral health or tobacco control, to name a few. —Helen Branswell, STAT, 30 Mar. 2026 We’ve been dealt a nigh-unbearable hand when two of our communities were utterly savaged by fire. —Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for savage
Cite this Entry
“Savage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/dictionary/savage. Accessed 27 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
savage
2 of 2 noun
1
offensive : a person belonging to a group with a low level of civilization
2
: a brutal person
Etymology
Adjective
Middle English savage "untamed, wild," from early French salvage, savage, (same meaning), from Latin salvaticus, an altered form of earlier silvaticus "of the woods, wild," from silva "woods, forest"
Word Origin
In Latin the adjective silvaticus, a derivative of silva, "forest," meant "growing or living in the forest." Because forest life is wild, the adjective easily acquired the meaning "wild, uncultivated" in later Latin as well as in the spoken Latin of the declining Roman Empire. Medieval French inherited silvaticus, altered to salvaticus, as salvage or sauvage, which was borrowed into Middle English. Medieval French sauvage retained the source meanings "wild, uncultivated (of fruit)" and "untamed (of animals)." But it could also be applied to humans, in which case its meanings could range from "lacking civilization, barbarous" to "fierce, cruel." English savage has had all these senses at some point in its history.
Biographical Definition
Savage
biographical name
Sav·age ˈsa-vij 
Michael Joseph 1872–1940 prime minister of New Zealand (1935–40)
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