damp squib
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noun British Informal.
something meant but failing to impress or succeed.
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Nearby words
- damon,
- damon and pythias,
- damp,
- damp box,
- damp off,
- damp-dry,
- damp-mop,
- damp-proof,
- dampcourse,
- dampen
Origin of damp squib
First recorded in 1965–70
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for damp squib
It must be owned that they were decidedly daring, yet in the nature of damp-squib affairs, as it turned out.