wild card: Meaning and Definition of

wild' card"

1. a card having its value decided by the wishes of the players.
2. a determining or important person or thing whose qualities are unknown, indeterminate, or unpredictable: In a sailboat race the weather is the wild card.
3. a player, usually without ranking, who is allowed to enter a tournament at the discretion of the tournament committee after regularly qualifying competitors have been selected.

wild-card

1. of, constituting, or including a wild card.
2. of, being, or including an unpredictable or unproven element, person, item, etc.
3. of, being, or including an unseeded or unproven participant or team, as a team in a championship tournament that has not placed first in its league or area.