tamer; tamest
1
: reduced from a state of native wildness especially so as to be tractable and useful to humans : domesticated
tame animals
2
: made docile and submissive : subdued
3
: lacking spirit, zest, interest, or the capacity to excite : insipid
a tame campaign
tamely
adverb
tameness
noun
tamed; taming
1
a
: to reduce from a wild to a domestic state
b
: to subject to cultivation
c
: to bring under control : harness
2
3
: to tone down : soften
tamed the language in the play
: to become tame
tamer
noun
Synonyms
Examples of tame in a Sentence
Adjective
The island's birds are quite tame.
They ran a pretty tame campaign.
Some people were shocked by the movie, but I found the story pretty tame.
Members of the audience were too tame to interrupt the speaker.
Verb
It took a while to tame the horse.
the people who tamed the Wild West
He struggled to tame his temper.
The government needs to do something to tame inflation.
Recent Examples on the Web
Talmon Joseph Smith, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2025
It can be used to de-frizz ends, define curls, or tame flyaways.
—Ashley Davis, WWD, 6 Jan. 2025
Kiki Intarasuwan, CBS News, 13 Jan. 2025
Trump’s transactional and pragmatic engagement with adversaries may do more to tame geopolitical rivalry than Biden’s view of a globe defined by a clash between democracy and autocracy.
—Charles A. Kupchan, The Atlantic, 10 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for tame 
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Adjective
There is a hope, among Wall Street fund managers and labor economists alike, that hiring can remain steady and that — in defiance of the usual odds — the unemployment rate can sustain its tame levels for the foreseeable future.
—Talmon Joseph Smith, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2025
It can be used to de-frizz ends, define curls, or tame flyaways.
—Ashley Davis, WWD, 6 Jan. 2025
Verb
As the Palisades and Eaton fires continue to scorch Southern California, helpless spectators are raising questions about whether there are better ways to tame the flames.
—Kiki Intarasuwan, CBS News, 13 Jan. 2025
Trump’s transactional and pragmatic engagement with adversaries may do more to tame geopolitical rivalry than Biden’s view of a globe defined by a clash between democracy and autocracy.
—Charles A. Kupchan, The Atlantic, 10 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for tame
Dictionary Entries Near tame
Cite this Entry
“Tame.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tame. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tame
1 of 2 adjective
tamer; tamest
1
: changed from the wild state so as to become useful and obedient to human beings : domesticated
a tame elephant
2
: made gentle and obedient
3
: lacking spirit or interest : dull
tamely
adverb
tameness
noun
tame
2 of 2 verb
tamed; taming
1
a
: to make or become tame
tame a lion
b
: to subject to cultivation
wilderness tamed by farmers
2
: to bring under control : subdue
tame your temper
tamer
noun
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