damp
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damp¹
- /ˈdæmp/
- [ˈdæmp]
- /ˈdeə̯mp/ Canada, US
- [ˈdeə̯mp] Canada, US
- /ˈdɛə̯mp/ Canada, US
- [ˈdɛə̯mp] Canada, US
- /ˈdeːmp/ Australia
- [ˈdeːmp] Australia
Rhymes with -æmp
Where it comes from
From Middle English dampen (“to stifle; suffocate”), from Old English damp, from Proto-Germanic *dampaz.
Akin to Low German damp, Dutch damp, and German Dampf (“vapor, steam, fog”), Icelandic dampi, Swedish damm (“dust”), and to German dampf imperative of dimpfen (“to smoke”). Also Middle English dampen (“to extinguish, choke, suffocate”).
adjective damper · dampest
-
In a state between dry and wet; moderately wet; moist.
25 January 2017, Leena Camadoo writing in The Guardian, Dominican banana producers at sharp end of climate change
Once the farms have been drained and the dead plants have been cut down and cleared, farmers then have to be alert for signs of black sigatoka, a devastating fungus which flourishes in d
Similar: moist
-
Despondent; dispirited, downcast.
27 July 2016, Jane O’Faherty in The Irish Independent, Monarchs and prison officers win big on second race day
Though Travis's 'Why does it always Rain on Me' boomed around the stands, there were few damp spirits in Galway on day two of the races.
Similar: glum
- Permitting the possession of alcoholic beverages, but not their sale. The Roadhouse was twenty-seve miles down the road from Niniltna, nine feet and three inches outside the Niniltna Native Association's tribal jurisdiction, and therefore not subject to the dry law currently in effect. Or was it damp? Kate thought it might have changed, yet again, at the last election
Similar: thoan, thone, melancholy, sorrowful
noun damps
- Moisture; humidity; dampness. Ere twice in murk and occidental damp / Moist Hesperus hath quench’d his sleepy lamp,
- Fog; fogginess; vapor. Night […] with black air / Accompanied, with damps and dreadful gloom.
- Dejection or depression; something that spoils a positive emotion (such as enjoyment, satisfaction, expectation or courage) or a desired activity. Ev’n now, while thus I stand blest in thy Presence, / A secret Damp of Grief comes o’er my Thoughts,
- A gaseous product, formed in coal mines, old wells, pits, etc. There are sulphurous Vapours which infect the Vegetables, and render the Grass unwholsom to the Cattle that feed upon it: Miners are often hurt by these Steams. Observations made in some of the Mines in Derbyshire, describe four sorts of those Damps.
verb damps · damping · damped
- To suppress vibrations (mechanical) or oscillations (electrical) by converting energy to heat (or some other form of energy). Hydraulic shock absorbers are used to damp out vertical and lateral oscillations.
-
To dampen; to make moderately wet.
to damp cloth
Similar: moisten
- To put out, as fire; to weaken, restrain, or make dull. How many a day has been damped and darkened by an angry word!
DAMP²
noun DAMPs
- Initialism of damage-associated molecular pattern
- Acronym of deficits in attention, motor control and perception.
Damp³
Where it comes from
* As an English surname, from the adjective damp.
* As a north/Low German and Danish surname, from places with the name Damp, such as Damp in Schleswig-Holstein, possibly from an old onomatopoeic verb meaning "to fall down," referring to falling watercourse of the Bökenau / Schwastrumer Au near the estate. Compare Danish dumpe and English dump.
proper noun
- A municipality in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.
- A surname from German.
- A surname from English.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: moist, moistness, dampen, wet, break, weaken, tone down, soften, muffle, deaden, dull, mute, dank, humid, dewy, humidity
adjective
Similar: thoan, thone, melancholy, sorrowful
Translations
Every language
adj Being in a state between dry and wet
| 한국어 | 축축하다 chukchukhada |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 湿っぽい shimeppoi, 湿った shimetta |
| 中文 | 潮濕 /潮湿 cháoshi, 濕潤 /湿润 shīrùn |
| हिन्दी | आर्द्र ārdra |
| Português | úmido, húmido |
| Français | humide, moite, mouillé |
| Deutsch | feucht |
| Italiano | umido, bagnato, madido |
| Ελληνικά | νοτερός noterós |
| Română | umed |
| Русский | сыро́й syrój |
| Tiếng Việt | ẩm |
| עברית | לַח laẖ |
adj Dejected
| Ελληνικά | αποθαρρυμένος apotharryménos |
|---|
noun moisture
| Español | humedad |
|---|---|
| Português | umidade, humidade |
| Français | humidité |
| Deutsch | Feuchtigkeit |
| Italiano | umidità |
| Ελληνικά | υγρασία ygrasía, νότος nótos |
| العربية | رُطُوبة ruṭūba |
noun dejection
| Ελληνικά | αποθάρρυνση apothárrynsi |
|---|
verb to suppress vibrations or oscillations
| Español | amortiguar |
|---|---|
| Português | amortecer |
| Français | amortir |
| Deutsch | dämpfen |
| Italiano | smorzare |
verb to put out, as fire
| Deutsch | ersticken, dämpfen |
|---|---|
| Italiano | smorzare, soffocare, rallentare |
Talk about this word "damp." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/damp. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. damp. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/damp "damp." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/damp.Cite this
@misc{damp_2026,
title = {damp},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/damp},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}