damn

[ dam ]

/ dæm /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR damn ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to declare (something) to be bad, unfit, invalid, or illegal.

to condemn as a failure: to damn a play.

to bring condemnation upon; ruin.

to doom to eternal punishment or condemn to hell.

to swear at or curse, using the word “damn”: Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!

verb (used without object)

to use the word “damn”; swear.

interjection

(used as an expletive to express anger, annoyance, disgust, etc.)

noun

the utterance of “damn” in swearing or for emphasis.

something of negligible value: not worth a damn.

adjective

damned(defs 2, 3).

adverb

damned.

QUIZZES

TAKE THIS QUIZ TO SEE WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT HIGH SCHOOL PUNCTUATION!

Commas mark divisions in sentences. Periods end declarative sentences. Apostrophes show possession. Easy, right? Well, punctuation can get pretty tricky—fast. Think you got what it takes to be a punctuation expert? Take our quiz to prove it!

Question 1 of 10

Which of the options below is the best punctuation for the sentence? It__s your turn to pick the movie __ but your sister gets to pick the board game we _ re going to play.

Its your turn to pick the movie but your sister gets to pick the board game we’re going to play.

It’s your turn to pick the movie but your sister gets to pick the board game were going to play.

It’s your turn to pick the movie, but your sister gets to pick the board game we’re going to play.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms for damn

damn well, Informal. damned(def 7).

damn with faint praise, to praise so moderately as, in effect, to condemn: The critic damned the opera with faint praise when he termed the production adequate.

give a damn, Informal. to care; be concerned; consider as important: You shouldn't give a damn about their opinions.Also give a darn.

Origin of damn

1250–1300; Middle English dam(p)nen < Old French dam(p)ner < Latin damnāre to condemn, derivative of damnum damage, fine, harm

SYNONYMS FOR damn

2 berate, censure, denounce, disparage, blast.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR damn ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM damn

damn·er, nounpre·damn, verb (used with object)

Words nearby damn

damien, damietta, daminozide, dammar, dammit, damn, damn the torpedoes, damn well, damn with faint praise, damnable, damnably

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for damn

But damn, the music is catchy—a neo-soul aural assault of horns, electro swirls, yelps, funky basslines, and harmonized vocals.
The 14 Best Songs of 2014: Bobby Shmurda, Future Islands, Drake, and More|Marlow Stern|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He had just as much right to be there as any other damn body.
How Martin Luther King Jr. Influenced Sam Cooke’s ‘A Change Is Gonna Come’|Peter Guralnick|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Fortunately, no one gives a damn about a Daily Beast reporter.
Sneer and Clothing in Miami: Inside The $3 Billion Woodstock of Contemporary Art|Jay Michaelson|December 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Dread is the feeling I get when something bad seems to be on the way, and I know that there's not a damn thing I can do about it.
Awaiting the Grand Jury, Dread in Ferguson and America|Gene Robinson|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST

“She fought so Damn hard,” the poster added in a follow-up comment.
Did the Amber Lynn Coplin Murder Photos Sicken the Creeps of 4Chan?|Michael Daly|November 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If Bishop Caiaphas had been a layman he would perhaps have added, Damn him!
Rejected of Men|Howard Pyle
It wouldn't take much to make me strike; damn me, there's fighting blood in me, and you know it.
Horse-Shoe Robinson|John Pendleton Kennedy
"Damn the stocks," began Mr. Stirn, plunging right in medias res, and by a fine use of one of the noblest figures of rhetoric.
The International Magazine, Volume 2, No. 2, January, 1851|Various
Yes, and damn 'em, they'll find that others mean business, too!
The Night Riders|Henry C. Wood
Why, damn it, you ought to know which one it wasyou bandaged it!
The Ranchman|Charles Alden Seltzer