Definition

1. Noun:
   • The process of adapting a plant or animal to live in close association with and for the benefit of humans: This is the primary meaning, referring to the taming and breeding of wild species over generations to make them useful to people.
   • The process of making someone accustomed to home and family life: This meaning refers to the adaptation of a person to a settled, domestic lifestyle.
   • The state of being domesticated: This refers to the attribute or condition of having been tamed and adapted for human use or home life.

Usage

• The word "domestication" is typically used as an uncountable noun. It describes a long-term process or a resulting state.
• It is commonly used in academic fields like biology, anthropology, and history when discussing the history of human societies and their relationship with other species.
• In a more figurative or social context, it can describe the taming of a person's wild or independent nature to fit conventional home life.

Examples

• Scientific/Historical Context:
  • The domestication of wolves was a key step in human prehistory.
  • Plant domestication led to the development of agriculture.
• Social/Figurative Context:
  • After years of travel, his domestication was a surprise to his friends.
  • She resisted the domestication expected by her family.

Advanced Usage

• "Process of domestication": Emphasizes the ongoing, historical nature of the act.
  • The process of domestication can take hundreds of years.
• "Resist domestication": Often used figuratively to describe a person or thing that refuses to be tamed or conform to a settled, conventional life.
  • The wild horse continued to resist all attempts at domestication.

Variants and Related Words

• Domesticate (verb): To tame (an animal) or adapt (a plant) for human use. / To make someone fond of and good at home life.
  • Farmers learned to domesticate wild grains.
• Domestic (adjective): Relating to the home, family, or household. / (Of an animal) tamed and kept by humans.
  • Domestic cats are a different species from their wild ancestors.
• Domesticity (noun): Home or family life, or the qualities associated with it.
  • He found a sense of peace in domesticity.

Synonyms

• Taming: The process of making a wild animal not afraid of humans and manageable.
• Cultivation: The process of preparing and using land for crops; can be related to plant domestication.
• Naturalization (in a specific, dated sense): The process of introducing a plant or animal to a new region where it becomes established. (Note: This is distinct from the primary meaning of "domestication").

Different Meanings

1. Biological/Agricultural Meaning: The adaptation of a species of plant or animal to life in intimate association with and to the advantage of humans.
2. Social/Personal Meaning: The adaptation of a person to home life and the acceptance of its routines and responsibilities.

Idioms

• : This is the standard structure, not a unique idiom. It frames the concept as a transformative process.
  • The documentary explored the domestication of the fox for scientific study.

Notes

• The concept of "domestication" is central to understanding the Neolithic Revolution and the development of human civilizations.
• In modern discourse, the term can sometimes carry a slightly negative or restrictive connotation when applied to people, implying a loss of freedom or wild spirit.

Noun

1. accommodation to domestic life
   • her explorer husband resisted all her attempts at domestication
2. the attribute of having been domesticated
3. adaptation to intimate association with human beings