Hello, you have come here looking for the meaning of the word
dampen. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
dampen, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
dampen in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
dampen you have here. The definition of the word
dampen will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
dampen, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Etymology
From damp + -en.
Pronunciation
Verb
dampen (third-person singular simple present dampens, present participle dampening, simple past and past participle dampened)
- (transitive) To make damp or moist; to make moderately wet.
- (intransitive) To become damp or moist.
- (transitive) To lessen; to dull; to make less intense (said of emotions and non-physical things).
We won't let the bad news dampen our spirits.
- 1883 "Pomona's Daughter", Frank R. Stockton, in The Century, vol. XXVI, number 1, May, page 25
- He was dreadfully familiar with everything, and talked about some places we were longing to see in a way that considerably dampened our enthusiasm.
2007 October 16, Jane E. Brody, “Despite Strides, Listeria Needs Vigilance”, in The New York Times:Pregnant women are 20 times as likely as other healthy young women to contract listeriosis, probably because in pregnancy the immune system is dampened to prevent rejection of the fetus.
2020 May 20, “J&J to sell baby powder in UK despite stopping US sales”, in BBC, London: BBC, retrieved 2020-05-22:The firm said changes in consumer behaviour had also dampened demand for the powder.
- (transitive, proscribed) To suppress vibrations (mechanical) or oscillations (electrical) by converting energy to heat (or some other form of energy).[usage 1]
- (intransitive) To become damped or deadened.
Usage notes
- ^ Due to confusion with the similar-looking verb damp, overgeneralization from the nearby sense of "to lessen or to dull", and/or conflation of transitive "damp" with intransitive "dampen", "dampen" is increasingly used in nontechnical contexts as a synonym for "damp", especially in the case of "dampened" versus "damped". However, this usage is still considered incorrect in technical contexts.
Derived terms
Translations
Anagrams
Danish
Noun
dampen c
- definite singular of damp
Dutch
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
From damp + -en. The meaning “to vape” is a semantic loan from English.
Verb
dampen
- (intransitive) to steam, to give off steam or smoke
- (intransitive) to vape (to inhale the vapour of an electronic cigarette)
- Synonym: vapen
Inflection
Derived terms
Etymology 2
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Noun
dampen
- plural of damp
Middle English
Verb
dampen
- Alternative form of dampnen
Norwegian Bokmål
Noun
dampen m
- definite singular of damp
Norwegian Nynorsk
Noun
dampen
- definite singular of damp