驯

• Pinyin: xùn
• Hanzi breakdown: 驯 = 马 + 川 (horse radical + flowing river — guiding a horse to follow like water through a channel)

Meaning

To tame; to domesticate; to train (an animal). Also used as an adjective meaning docile, obedient, or compliant.

Used both as a verb (to tame/domesticate) and as an adjective (tame/docile). Common in animal training contexts and, by extension, metaphorically for people who have been brought under control. Key compounds include 驯服 (tame/subdue), 驯化 (domesticate), and 桀骜不驯 (wild and untameable — a set phrase).

Examples

1. 马戏团的驯兽师花费多年时间，将几头凶猛的棕熊驯服成能配合演出节目的表演动物。 The circus animal trainer spent years taming several fierce brown bears into performance animals that could cooperate in show routines.
2. 考古证据表明，人类驯化狗的历史可追溯至数万年前的旧石器时代晚期，彼时它们尚是野狼的后代。 Archaeological evidence shows that humans began domesticating dogs as far back as the Late Paleolithic, when they were still descendants of wild wolves.
3. 这匹桀骜不驯的野马起初拒绝任何人靠近，经过驯马师长达数月的耐心调教，终于变得温顺可骑。 This untamable wild horse refused to let anyone come near at first, but after months of patient training, it finally became docile enough to ride.

Usage Guide

Context: animal training, biology, literature

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 经过专业训练，这只猎鹰已被完全驯服，能够精准地按照驯鹰师的指令完成各种高难度飞行动作。(After professional training, this falcon has been fully tamed and can precisely execute various demanding aerial manoeuvres according to the falconer's commands.)
• 从进化角度来看，农业文明兴起之后，人类驯化牲畜的能力对早期定居社会的形成与发展起到了至关重要的推动作用。(From an evolutionary perspective, after the rise of agricultural civilisation, the human capacity to domesticate livestock played a crucial role in driving the formation and development of early settled societies.)

Don't Say

• 我驯了我的朋友 — applying 驯 to people sounds dehumanising; use 说服 (persuade) or 影响 (influence) for changing someone's behaviour; 驯 is reserved for animals or used metaphorically in formal literary contexts

Origin & History

驯 = 马 + 川 (horse + river — guiding a horse like water flows in a channel, bringing it to compliance)

Cultural Context

Era: Classical/Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal