dampnen

Middle English

Alternative forms

• dame, damne, damnen, damni, dampen, dampne, dempnen

Etymology

Borrowed from Old French dampner, from Latin damnō; compare condempnen.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈdam(p)nən/, /ˈdam(p)ən/

Verb

dampnen (third-person singular simple present dampneth, present participle dampnende, dampnynge, first-/third-person singular past indicative and past participle dampned)

1. to condemn, denounce, criticise
2. (law) to charge as guilty; to effect punishment.
3. to damn (consign to hell)
4. to condemn to some ill fate, to doom or destine (to die, etc.)
   • late 14th century, Geoffrey Chaucer, The Man of Law's Tale, The Canterbury Tales, line 843-844:

     [...] Mankind was lorn and damned ay to dye,
     For which thy child was on a croys y-rent; [...]

     Mankind was lost, and damned forever to die,
     For which your child was stretched on a cross;

5. (law, rare) to make illegal; to ban
6. (law, rare) to nullify

Conjugation

Related terms

• dampnable
• dampnablely
• dampnacioun
• dampnynge

Descendants

• English: damn
• Scots: damn

References

• “dampnen, v.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.