tamed
Americanadjective
-
(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.
-
(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.
-
(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.
-
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.
-
deprived of courage, ardor, or zest.
Tamed faith cannot dispel shame or reach out to lovingly reclaim someone who has gone astray.
-
(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.
There was a strong feeling the Pennsylvania course might be ripe for being tamed.
From BBC • May 15, 2026
Dusty May and the basketball Wolverines have tamed the wild, remunerated new era of college sports.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026
Cities are squalid crime hives that need to be tamed or abandoned in the Sheridanverse, whereas small towns and Western vistas are quaint canvases fertile with possibility.
From Salon • Mar. 23, 2026
Sondheim’s were instead tamed by his art, Okrent suggests, which shaped his “textured, contradictory, troubling, and gratifying life.”
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 17, 2026
A cavalry soldier, restless and caged in the tamed and political East, who loves the great plains and the memory of snow.
From "The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War" by Michael Shaara
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.
