English Reference
adjective · verb

tame

adj. · v.
US /ˈteɪm/ UK /tˈeɪm/ tame UK spelling tames, taming

  1. 01 B1 Intermediate

    adj.not wild or dangerous because it is used to being around people.

    adj.describing an animal that has been domesticated or is naturally docile toward humans.

    Simple

    The deer in the park are quite tame and will eat right out of your hand.

    In context

    After generations of selective breeding, the foxes became remarkably tame, displaying behaviors more typical of domestic dogs than their wild ancestors.

  2. 02 B2 Upper Intermediate

    adj.boring or not very interesting.

    adj.lacking spirit, intensity, or excitement; often used to describe events or entertainment that failed to meet expectations.

    Simple

    The party was a bit tame compared to the one they had last year.

    In context

    Critics found the sequel surprisingly tame, noting that the director had stripped away the gritty realism that made the original film so compelling.

    dullmildunexciting
  3. 03 C2 Proficiency Technical Math

    adj.a special way to describe shapes in math that are not too complicated.

    adj.describing a knot or embedding that can be represented as a finite closed polygonal chain.

    Simple

    In this geometry lesson, we are only looking at tame curves.

    In context

    The theorem specifically applies to tame knots, excluding the pathological complexities found in wild embeddings that cannot be simplified into polygonal segments.

  4. 04 B2 Upper Intermediate

    v.to make a wild animal calm or to control something that is difficult to manage.

    v.to domesticate a wild animal or to bring a powerful or unruly force under control.

    Simple

    It took many months of patient work to tame the wild horse.

    In context

    The government introduced new regulations in an attempt to tame the rampant inflation that had devalued the national currency over the previous decade.

    domesticatemastersubdue
This entry
Level B1 · Intermediate
Frequency Frequent
Updated