Showing results for "damper"

• comparative of damp.

damper

American  

[dam-per] / ˈdæm pər /

noun

• dampers
  plural

1. a person or thing that damps or depresses.

   His glum mood put a damper on their party.

2. a movable plate for regulating the draft in a stove, furnace, etc.

3. Music.

   1. a device in stringed keyboard instruments to deaden the vibration of the strings.

   2. the mute of a brass instrument, as a horn.

4. Electricity. an attachment to keep the indicator of a measuring instrument from oscillating excessively, as a set of vanes in a fluid or a short-circuited winding in a magnetic field.

5. Machinery. a shock absorber.

6. Australian.

   1. a round, flat cake made of flour and water, and cooked over a campfire.

   2. the dough for such cakes.

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damper British  

/ ˈdæmpə /

noun

1. a person, event, or circumstance that depresses or discourages

2. to produce a depressing or inhibiting effect on

   the bad news put a damper on the party

3. a movable plate to regulate the draught in a stove or furnace flue

4. a device to reduce electronic, mechanical, acoustic, or aerodynamic oscillations in a system

5. music the pad in a piano or harpsichord that deadens the vibration of each string as its key is released

6. any of various unleavened loaves and scones, typically cooked on an open fire

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damper Idioms  

1. see put a damper on.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• dampers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of damper

First recorded in 1740–50; damp + -er ¹

Explanation

When you put a damper on something, you restrain it or inhibit it. Putting a damper on things usually means bringing them down — your car troubles might put a damper on your travel plans. A forecast of afternoon thunderstorms will put a damper on your picnic preparations, and being assigned a long research paper on Friday might be a damper on your weekend free time. More physical kinds of dampers include a device that restrains air in a chimney, by blocking or directing its flow, and a pad that's made to soften or muffle the sound from a musical instrument.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

damper dampers

At around that level, investors tend to become increasingly concerned that higher borrowing costs could put a damper on economic growth, while increasing the cost of capital for large publicly traded companies, Buchbinder said.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

Along with a negative reaction to results from chip maker Advanced Micro Devices, that has put a damper on tech stocks in early trading.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

"I think it really put a damper on all the watch parties," he said.

From BBC ● Jun. 9, 2026

But only a slim margin will be left over, and that will put a damper on shareholder returns.

From Barron's ● Jun. 2, 2026

Even now, Izzy thought, her sister seemed less effervescent, less gregarious, as if a damper had been closed.

From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng

The vehicle’s dampers adjust instantly according to the camera feed monitoring the road ahead.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026

Earthquake precautions include massive metal dampers that are fixed to essential infrastructure, such as the duct carrying the control rooms’ air supply.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2024

CFM said the majority of parts involved are "non-serialized items like bolts, nuts, washers, dampers, seals and bushings".

From Reuters ● Oct. 5, 2023

Moreover, they added, in many buildings, the underlying air-handling infrastructure — the fans and filters, dampers and ductwork — is poorly maintained, and improving indoor air quality will require investing in these basic technologies.

From New York Times ● Jun. 29, 2023

So Debussy’s hanging chords, with the dampers kept away from the strings, represented a kind of return to nature, a move away from the more artificial sound of block chords.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall