dampen — was once regarded as an Americanism, but is now established as a variant of damp (verb) in BrE, especially in figurative uses: • Everyone ignored the snow that had failed to dampen the impact of John F. Kennedy s brilliant oratory Jeffrey Archer … Modern English usage
dampen — [v1] make wet bedew, besprinkle, dabble, humidify, moisten, rinse, spray, sprinkle, water, wet; concept 256 Ant. dry dampen [v2] spoil spirits allay, check, chill, cloud, cool, curb, dash, deaden, deject, depress, diminish, discourage, dismay,… … New thesaurus
Dampen — Damp en (d[a^]mp n), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {dampened} (d[a^]mp nd); p. pr. & vb. n. {dampening}.] 1. To make damp or moist; to make slightly wet. [1913 Webster] 2. To depress; to check; to make dull; to lessen. [1913 Webster] In a way that… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Dampen — Damp en, v. i. To become damp; to deaden. Byron. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
dampen — UK US /ˈdæmpən/ verb [T] ► to make something less strong or successful: »The outlook for the global economy looked gloomy, and dampened expectations of a rise in profits that quarter. »Rising raw material costs dampened profits for many… … Financial and business terms
dampen — 1630s, to dull or deaden (of force, enthusiasm, ardor, etc.), from DAMP (Cf. damp) (q.v.) + EN (Cf. en) (1). Meaning to moisten is recorded from 1827. Related: Dampened; dampening … Etymology dictionary
dampen — ► VERB 1) make damp. 2) make less strong or intense. DERIVATIVES dampener noun … English terms dictionary
dampen — [dam′pən] vt. 1. to make damp; moisten 2. to deaden, depress, reduce, or lessen vi. to become damp dampener n … English World dictionary
dampen — [[t]dæ̱mpən[/t]] dampens, dampening, dampened 1) VERB To dampen something such as someone s enthusiasm or excitement means to make it less lively or intense. [V n] Nothing seems to dampen his perpetual enthusiasm... [V n] I hate to dampen your… … English dictionary
dampen — damp|en [ dæmpən ] verb transitive 1. ) to make something slightly wet: If you dampen laundry, it s much easier to iron it. 2. ) dampen or dampen down to make something such as a feeling or hope less strong: Not even defeat could dampen the… … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
