tamed
Americanadjective
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(of animals) changed from the wild or savage state, so as to be gentle and unafraid of humans; domesticated.
If released into the wild, a tamed lion is an easy target for hunters.
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(of a person or disposition) made tractable, docile, or submissive.
My whole life I have struggled not to become the tamed child of institutionalized education.
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(of natural resources, etc.) brought under control and into service; made useful and manageable.
When the dam was complete and the tamed river swelled into a lake, steamboats plied its waters for excursions.
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deprived of excitement, interest, attractiveness, or risk; made safe and dull.
According to Kloosterman, a “fully tamed city” is not just boring, but also stiffening—it stifles flexibility.
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deprived of courage, ardor, or zest.
Tamed faith cannot dispel shame or reach out to lovingly reclaim someone who has gone astray.
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(of land or plants) cultivated.
The vine is a tamed plant; its growth rate, amount of foliage, and fruit production are closely controlled by pruning and thinning.
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of tamed
First recorded in 1580–90; tame + -ed 2 ( def. ) for the adjective senses; tame + -ed 1 ( def. ) for the verb sense
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A New England frontiersman and ‘49er called “Grizzly Adams” — a name we likely know from a 1970s television show — tamed and trained a couple of young grizzlies as his companions.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
On a true pitch, small ground and with a lightning outfield, England could not be tamed.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
The high inflation of the late 1970s had been tamed by two painful recessions in the early 1980s, and Greenspan saw his primary task as consolidating those gains.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
If housing inflation doesn’t cooperate, it leaves officials without much hope that inflationary pressures can be tamed in the near-term.
From Barron's ● May 11, 2026
But none of those tamed animals was actually domesticated—that is, selectively bred in captivity and genetically modified so as to become more useful to humans.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
