Meaning & use
tamed
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“tamed” is a form of “tame”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
adjectivebefore a noun
Trained or brought under control so that a once-wild animal is no longer dangerous and will live near people.
Grammar: Used before a noun or after be: a tamed falcon. It implies the animal was wild first, unlike 'tame', which can describe any gentle animal.
Patterns
- a tamed animal
- be tamed by someone
The tamed fox followed the old woman around the farm like a dog.
A tamed falcon sat on his glove, calm among the crowd.
Villagers once kept tamed wolves to guard their sheep.
adjectivecomparablefigurative
Made weaker, calmer or easier to deal with, as of a strong feeling, a habit, a river or an unruly situation.
Grammar: Used figuratively and often after a linking verb or after 'finally': his temper was tamed.
Patterns
- a tamed river
- be tamed by something
Her fear of flying was tamed after months of therapy.
The tamed river no longer flooded the valley each spring.
The manager's tamed enthusiasm made the plan feel safe but dull.
Common combinations
- newly tamed
- The newly tamed horse still flinched at sudden noises.
- tamed by something
- The wild garden was tamed by a summer of hard work.
- half tamed
- The half tamed cat would take food but not be touched.
- tamed wilderness
- The park is a tamed wilderness, with paths and benches everywhere.
- finally tamed
- His unruly hair was finally tamed by a good haircut.
Synonyms and how they differ
- domesticated
- Domesticated usually describes a whole species bred over generations to live with people, while tamed describes an individual animal trained to be gentle.
- subdued
- Subdued suggests someone or something has been quieted or held back, often in mood, and does not suggest a wild animal being trained.
- docile
- Docile describes a natural gentle, obedient nature, whereas tamed says that the gentleness was achieved by training.
- broken
- Broken, as in a broken horse, stresses that the animal's spirit was forced into obedience, so it sounds harsher than tamed.
Opposites
Word family
- tame verb
- to make a wild animal gentle, or to bring something under control
- tame adjective
- gentle and not afraid of people, or dull and not exciting
- tamer noun
- a person who trains wild animals, as in a lion tamer
- untamed adjective
- still wild and not controlled
- tameness noun
- the quality of being gentle or lacking excitement
Commonly confused: tamed or domesticated?
tamed vs domesticated
A domesticated species has lived with people for many generations, like dogs. A tamed animal is just one wild creature that has been trained; its species is still wild.
Practice
A fox that was once wild but now eats from your hand and does not run away can be described as ___.
Choose one answer.
Tamed means a wild animal has been made gentle around people. Feral means a domestic animal that has gone wild, so it is the opposite, and hostile describes aggression.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “tamed”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.