Adjacent Words

Damp definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

DAMP, a.
1. Moist; humid; being in a state between dry and wet; as a damp cloth; damp air; sometimes, foggy; as, the atmosphere is damp; but it may be damp without visible vapor.
2. Dejected; sunk; depressed; chilled.
DAMP, n.
1. Moist air; humidity; moisture; fog.
2. Dejection; depression of spirits; chill. We say, to strike a damp, or to cast a damp, on the spirits.
3. Damps. plu. Noxious exhalations issuing from the earth, and deleterious or fatal to animal life. These are often known to exist in wells, which continue long covered and not used, and in mines and coal-pits; and sometimes they issue from the old lavas of volcanoes. These damps are usually the carbonic acid gas, vulgarly called choke-damp, which instantly suffocates; or some inflammable gas, called fire-damp.
DAMP, v.t.
1. To moisten; to make humid, or moderately wet.
2. To chill; to deaden; to depress or deject; to abate; as, to damp the spirits; to damp the ardor of passion.
3. To weaken; to make dull; as, to damp sound.
4. To check or restrain, as action or vigor; to make languid; to discourage; as, to damp industry.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: slightly wet; "clothes damp with perspiration"; "a moist breeze"; "eyes moist with tears" [syn: damp, dampish, moist] n
1: a slight wetness [syn: damp, dampness, moistness] v
1: deaden (a sound or noise), especially by wrapping [syn: muffle, mute, dull, damp, dampen, tone down]
2: restrain or discourage; "the sudden bad news damped the joyous atmosphere"
3: make vague or obscure or make (an image) less visible; "muffle the message" [syn: dampen, deaden, damp]
4: lessen in force or effect; "soften a shock"; "break a fall" [syn: dampen, damp, soften, weaken, break]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, black damp, from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German, vapor; akin to Old High German damph vapor Date: 14th century 1. a noxious gas — compare black damp, firedamp 2. moisture: a. humidity, dampness b. archaic fog, mist 3. a. discouragement, check b. archaic depression, dejection II. verb Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. a. to affect with or as if with a noxious gas ; choke b. to diminish the activity or intensity of <damping down the causes of inflation> <liquid damps out compass oscillations> c. to check the vibration or oscillation of (as a string or voltage) 2. dampen intransitive verb to diminish progressively in vibration or oscillation III. adjective Date: 1590 1. a. archaic being confused, bewildered, or shocked ; stupefied b. depressed, dull 2. slightly or moderately wet ; moist <a damp towel>; also humid <damp weather> Synonyms: see wet • dampish adjective • damply adverb • dampness noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj., n., & v. --adj. slightly wet; moist. --n. 1 diffused moisture in the air, on a surface, or in a solid, esp. as a cause of inconvenience or danger. 2 dejection; discouragement. 3 = FIREDAMP. --v.tr. 1 make damp; moisten. 2 (often foll. by down) a take the force or vigour out of (damp one's enthusiasm). b make flaccid or spiritless. c make (a fire) burn less strongly by reducing the flow of air to it. 3 reduce or stop the vibration of (esp. the strings of a musical instrument). 4 quieten. Phrases and idioms: damp (or damp-proof) course a layer of waterproof material in the wall of a building near the ground, to prevent rising damp. damp off (of a plant) die from a fungus attack in damp conditions. damp squib an unsuccessful attempt to impress etc. Derivatives: damply adv. dampness n. Etymology: ME f. MLG, = vapour etc., OHG dampf steam f. WG

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Damp Damp, a. [Compar. Damper; superl. Dampest.] 1. Being in a state between dry and wet; moderately wet; moist; humid. O'erspread with a damp sweat and holy fear. --Dryden. 2. Dejected; depressed; sunk. [R.] All these and more came flocking, but with looks Downcast and damp. --Milton.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Damp Damp (d[a^]mp), n. [Akin to LG., D., & Dan. damp vapor, steam, fog, G. dampf, Icel. dampi, Sw. damb dust, and to MNG. dimpfen to smoke, imp. dampf.] 1. Moisture; humidity; fog; fogginess; vapor. Night . . . with black air Accompanied, with damps and dreadful gloom. --Milton. 2. Dejection; depression; cloud of the mind. Even now, while thus I stand blest in thy presence, A secret damp of grief comes o'er my soul. --Addison. It must have thrown a damp over your autumn excursion. --J. D. Forbes. 3. (Mining) A gaseous product, formed in coal mines, old wells, pints, etc. Choke damp, a damp consisting principally of carbonic acid gas; -- so called from its extinguishing flame and animal life. See Carbonic acid, under Carbonic. Damp sheet, a curtain in a mine gallery to direct air currents and prevent accumulation of gas. Fire damp, a damp consisting chiefly of light carbureted hydrogen; -- so called from its tendence to explode when mixed with atmospheric air and brought into contact with flame.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Damp Damp, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Damped; p. pr. & vb. n. Damping.] [OE. dampen to choke, suffocate. See Damp, n.] 1. To render damp; to moisten; to make humid, or moderately wet; to dampen; as, to damp cloth. 2. To put out, as fire; to depress or deject; to deaden; to cloud; to check or restrain, as action or vigor; to make dull; to weaken; to discourage. ``To damp your tender hopes.'' --Akenside. Usury dulls and damps all industries, improvements, and new inventions, wherein money would be stirring if it were not for this slug. --Bacon. How many a day has been damped and darkened by an angry word! --Sir J. Lubbock. The failure of his enterprise damped the spirit of the soldiers. --Macaulay.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(damper, dampest, damps, damping, damped) 1. Something that is damp is slightly wet. Her hair was still damp... She wiped the table with a damp cloth. = moist ADJ 2. Damp is moisture that is found on the inside walls of a house or in the air. There was damp everywhere and the entire building was in need of rewiring. see also rising damp 3. If you damp something, you make it slightly wet. Hillsden damped a hand towel and laid it across her forehead. = dampen VERB: V n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. n. 1. Moisture, vapor, fog, dampness dank. 2. Noxious exhalation, choke-damp or firedamp. 3. Depression, dejection, chill. II. a. Moist, humid, dank, wet. III. v. a. 1. Moisten, dampen. 2. Check, repress, restrain, moderate, allay, abate. 3. Chill, cool, deaden, depress, deject.

Moby Thesaurus

abate, abridge, absorb the shock, acoustic tile, afterdamp, allay, alleviate, antiknock, arrest, asperge, asphyxiate, assimilate to, assuage, attemper, attenuate, baffle, baffler, balance, bank the fire, beat down, bedew, bespatter, besprinkle, blackdamp, blow out, blunt, bogginess, boggy, bottle up, break the fall, breath, cast down, censor, chasten, check, chill, choke, choke off, chokedamp, clamminess, clammy, clamp down on, cloud, cold water, compress, constrain, control, cool, cork, cork up, countercheck, crack down on, cramp, crepehanger, cripple, crush, curb, curtail, cushion, cut, cut back, cut down, dabble, dam up, damp down, dampen, dampen the spirits, dampener, damper, dampish, dampness, dank, darken, dash, de-emphasize, deaden, deafen, debilitate, decrease, deduct, deflate, deflect, deject, delay, depreciate, depress, detain, deter, determent, deterrent, devitalize, dew, dewiness, dewy, diminish, disaffect, discourage, discouragement, dishearten, disincline, disinterest, dispirit, distract, divert, douche, douse, downgrade, downplay, drenched, drown, dull, effluvium, enervate, enfeeble, equalize, equilibrize, even, eviscerate, exhalation, exhaust, extenuate, extinguish, exudation, fenny, fetid air, firedamp, flatten, flatus, fluid, fogginess, fume, gag, gruel, harmonize, hinder, hold back, hold down, hold in check, hold up, homogenize, hose, hose down, humect, humectate, humectation, humid, humidify, humidity, humor, hushcloth, impede, indispose, inhibit, intercept, interfere, intermeddle, interrupt, intervene, irrigate, jump on, keep back, keep down, keep in check, keep under, keep within bounds, kill, killjoy, knock down, lay, lay low, lenify, lessen, level, lighten, lower, lower the spirits, make uniform, malaria, marshiness, marshy, meddle, mephitis, miasma, mistiness, misty, mitigate, moderate, modulate, moist, moisten, moistiness, moistness, moisture, muffle, muffler, muggy, mute, muzzle, neutralize, normalize, obtund, offset, oppose, oppress, out, paddle, palliate, pare, pessimist, play down, pour water on, press down, puff of smoke, put down, put off, put out, quash, quell, quench, quietener, rainfall, raininess, rainy, rattle, reduce, reduce the temperature, reek, regularize, regulate, repel, repress, resist, restrain, retard, retrench, roll back, roric, sadden, sap, saturated, scale down, scotch, set back, shake, shake up, shorten, show consideration, show mercy, show pity, showeriness, shut down on, silence, silence cloth, silencer, simplify, sink, sit down on, sit on, slack, slacken, slobber, slop, slosh, slow down, smash, smoke, smooth, smother, smudge, snub, snuff, snuff out, soaked, soaking, sober, sober down, soddenness, soft pedal, soft-pedal, soften, soften the blow, soften up, sogginess, soggy, soppiness, sordine, sordino, sound-absorbing material, soundproofing, soundproofing insulation, sourdine, sparge, spatter, splash, splatter, spoilsport, sponge, spray, sprinkle, squash, squelch, stabilize, stamp out, stanch, standardize, steam, steamy, step down, stereotype, sticky, stifle, stop, strangle, stultify, subdue, suffocate, suppress, swampiness, swampy, swash, symmetrize, syringe, tacky, take from, tame, temper, throttle, tone down, tune down, turn aside, turn away, turn from, turn off, unbrace, undermine, underplay, undried, uniformize, unman, unnerve, unstrengthen, unstring, vapor, volatile, water, water vapor, wateriness, weaken, wean from, weigh heavy upon, weigh upon, wet, wet blanket, wet down, wetness, wettish, wettishness