Domesticate (Verb)
Meaning 1
Adapt (a wild plant or unclaimed land) to the environment; "domesticate oats"; "tame the soil".
Classification
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc..
Synonyms
Hypernyms
Meaning 2
Overcome the wildness of; make docile and tractable; "He tames lions for the circus"; "reclaim falcons".
Classification
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc..
Synonyms
Hypernyms
Hyponyms
Meaning 3
Make fit for cultivation, domestic life, and service to humans; "The horse was domesticated a long time ago"; "The wolf was tamed and evolved into the house dog".
Classification
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc..
Examples
- The earliest known evidence of humans domesticating plants dates back to around 10,000 years ago in the Fertile Crescent region of the Middle East.
- Over time, people selectively bred the wild species to domesticate the animal, creating a tamer and more manageable creature.
- Scientists believe that the elephant was domesticated thousands of years ago in ancient Asia for use as a pack animal and in battle.
- The process to domesticate a wild species involves selectively breeding the strongest and most docile individuals to create a more manageable population.
- Researchers have been attempting to domesticate certain types of foxes, using similar techniques to those that originally domesticated the wolf.