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Glite Dictionary
to domesticize

to domesticize

8.5
To make a wild animal or plant tame so it can live with people and provide food
  • verb
  • /dəˈmɛstəˌsaɪz/
  • US
translation icon : domesticar
  • He was even able to just domesticize them in his gardens.

Examples

  • Farmers have learned to domesticize wild plants to produce better crops.

  • Excluded from the physically oriented homosocial world of the baseball players, he is instead domesticized through his performance of familial obligations in the public sphere of the boulevard or park.

    Academic text (1996)

  • The goal of the program is to domesticize rescued animals so they can find loving homes.

  • Historically, humans have been able to domesticize various animals for companionship and work.

Synonyms

to tame
vsto domesticize
68 3.0

To make something less wild or strong

adds the idea of adapting for home life and companionship
to domesticate
vsto domesticize
  • Specialized
32 4.1

To make wild animals or plants useful to people, for example by taming them

is focused on making them fit for household life and companionship
to socialize
vsto domesticize
  • Specialized
18 3.5

To teach a person or animal how to behave with others

focuses on fitting creatures for household life rather than general social norms
to reclaim
vsto domesticize
1 5.6

To make a wild animal calm and accept people

aims more at adapting creatures for home use and companionship

How Domesticated

to domesticize
  • US
8.5
to tame
68 3.0
to train
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

domesticize infinitive
domesticized past
domesticized past participle
domesticizing present participle
domesticizes third person singular

Morphology

domesticize = domestic (transparent) = domestic + ize

The verb is formed by adding the productive suffix '-ize' to the adjective 'domestic', meaning 'to make or become domestic'; this is a regular and guessable derivation.

Etymology

Domesticize comes from the Latin word domus meaning 'home', and you can see the same root in domestic and domicile. So, to domesticize an animal or plant is to make it 'fit for the home', to tame it or make it useful to people.