domesticate Hear it!

domesticate Definition

do·mes·ti·cate (dō mes′ti kāt′, də-)

transitive verb domesticated -·cat′ed, domesticating -·cat′·ing

  1. to accustom to home life; make domestic
    1. to tame (wild animals) and breed for human use
    2. to adapt and cultivate (wild plants) for human use
    3. to introduce (foreign animals or plants) into another region or country; naturalize
  3. to bring (a foreign custom, word, etc.) into a region or country and make it acceptable

Etymology: < ML domesticatus, pp. of domesticare, to tame, live in a family < L domesticus < domus: see dome

intransitive verb

Archaic to become domestic

Related Forms:

domesticate Synonyms

domesticate

v.

tame, train, breed, housebreak, subdue, break, gentle, break in, bust*; see also breed 3, teach 2, train 4.

domesticate Quotes

To marry is to domesticate the Recording Angel.Once you are married, there is nothing left for you, not even suicide, but to be good.

—Stevenson, Robert Louis