defanged
Stripped of bite
Defanged means having had the fangs removed, literally or figuratively.
A defanged snake poses less danger.
More often the word describes something stripped of its power or threat: The legislation was defanged by amendments, a defanged regulatory agency.
The implication is that what remains looks similar but can no longer bite.
Causing no injury
- declawedTalons surgically removed
- neuteredRendered infertile surgically
- bluntedMade less sharp
- tameMade gentle, manageable
impotent · emasculated · diluted · mitigated · subdued · muted · diminished · softened
Rendered inoperative
- disabledMade unable to function
- disarmedMade safe or captivated
- inactivatedMade no longer operative
- sanitizedCleansed of contaminants
stripped · undermined · suppressed · contained · restrained · curbed · controlled · blocked
Lacking power to achieve
- weakLacking power or force
- helplessUnable to act independently
- ineffectualFailing to achieve purpose
- vulnerableOpen to attack
enfeebled · debilitated · hamstrung · hobbled · crippled · incapacitated · sidelined · marginalized
Causing no alarm
- secureProtected from harm
- innocuousCausing no harm
- gentleSoft and kind
- docileEasily controlled or taught
domesticated · tamed · mild · inoffensive · manageable · controllable · contained · protected
harmless
Causing no injury
tame · impotent · emasculated · diluted · mitigated · subdued · muted · diminished · softened · mellowed
deactivated
Rendered inoperative
- disabledMade unable to function
- disarmedMade safe or captivated
- inactivatedMade no longer operative
sanitized · stripped · undermined · suppressed · contained · restrained · curbed · controlled · blocked · filtered
ineffective
Lacking power to achieve
- weakLacking power or force
- helplessUnable to act independently
- ineffectualFailing to achieve purpose
vulnerable · enfeebled · debilitated · hamstrung · hobbled · crippled · incapacitated · sidelined · marginalized · outmaneuvered
nonthreatening
Causing no alarm
docile · domesticated · tamed · mild · inoffensive · manageable · controllable · contained · protected · shielded
- puritypure, purity, pristine, spotless, spotlessness
- desexualizationneutering, spaying, castration, sterilization, gonadectomy