wildcat venture

9.2

A risky business project that is likely to fail but can give big profits

noun
/ˈwaɪldˌkæt ˈvɛnʧər/

: empresa arriesgada

Many lost money after backing a wildcat venture in the oil industry.

Examples

Investing in a wildcat venture can lead to significant losses.
Starting a wildcat venture is not for the faint of heart or the risk-averse.
His quick fortune came from a wildcat venture that most people doubted would succeed.
Many entrepreneurs are drawn to the excitement of a wildcat venture.
Many lost money after backing a wildcat venture in the oil industry.
Starting a wildcat venture is not for the faint of heart or the risk-averse.
Many entrepreneurs are drawn to the excitement of a wildcat venture.

Synonyms

risky business

vswildcat venture

Informal

9 4.4

An activity that could make you lose a lot of money or get hurt

is a commercial project that lacks proper investigation and increases risk

crapshoot

vswildcat venture

NSFW

7 9.1

A risky situation where the result depends mostly on luck

is risk from poor planning or lack of assurance rather than pure chance

moonshot

vswildcat venture

1 7.4

A very ambitious and risky project that may fail

is a high risk commercial project often begun without proper investigation

risky venture

vswildcat venture

1 4.6

An activity or plan that may fail and cause a big loss

is carried out without proper checks or assurance raising speculative danger

How Risky

wildcat venture

9.2

gamble

65 3.5

Surface Forms

wildcat venture singular

wildcat ventures plural

Morphology

wildcat + venture

The noun phrase is directly compositional: 'wildcat' (speculative/unauthorized) modifying 'venture' (a risky commercial undertaking) yields a speculative or unauthorized risky business. This adjective + noun combination follows regular English composition and is readily inferable by a B1 learner who knows both constituents, so the meaning is transparent.

Etymology

The term wildcat venture comes from old oil drilling: workers called 'wildcatters' would drill in wild, unknown places, like chasing a wildcat, hoping to find oil. So a wildcat venture means a business project that is 'risky' and not proven.