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definitions

damping-off

[dam-ping-awf, -of]
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noun Plant Pathology.

a disease of seedlings, occurring either before or immediately after emerging from the soil, characterized by rotting of the stem at soil level and eventual collapse of the plant, caused by any of several soil fungi.

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Nearby words

  1. damper pedal,
  2. dampier,
  3. dampier, william,
  4. damping,
  5. damping off,
  6. dampness,
  7. dampproof,
  8. damrosch,
  9. damrosch, leopold,
  10. damrosch, walter johannes

Origin of damping-off

First recorded in 1895–1900

damp

[damp]

adjective, damp·er, damp·est.

slightly wet; moist: damp weather; a damp towel.
unenthusiastic; dejected; depressed: The welcoming committee gave them a rather damp reception.

noun

moisture; humidity; moist air: damp that goes through your warmest clothes.
a noxious or stifling vapor or gas, especially in a mine.
depression of spirits; dejection.
a restraining or discouraging force or factor.

verb (used with object)

to make damp; moisten.
to check or retard the energy, action, etc., of; deaden; dampen: A series of failures damped her enthusiasm.
to stifle or suffocate; extinguish: to damp a furnace.
Acoustics, Music. to check or retard the action of (a vibrating string); dull; deaden.
Physics. to cause a decrease in amplitude of (successive oscillations or waves).

Verb Phrases

damp off, to undergo damping-off.

Origin of damp

1300–50; Middle English (in sense of def. 4); compare Middle Dutch damp, Middle High German dampf vapor, smoke
SYNONYMS FOR damp
1. dank, steamy. 3. dankness, dampness, fog, vapor. 7. humidify. 8. slow, inhibit, restrain, moderate, abate.
ANTONYMS FOR damp
1. dry.
Related forms
Can be confuseddamp moist (see synonym study at the current entry)damp dampen

Synonym study

1. Damp, humid, moist mean slightly wet. Damp usually implies slight and extraneous wetness, generally undesirable or unpleasant unless the result of intention: a damp cellar; to put a damp cloth on a patient's forehead. Humid is applied to unpleasant dampness in the air: The air is oppressively humid today. Moist denotes something that is slightly wet, naturally or properly: moist ground; moist leather.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
British Dictionary definitions for damping off

damping off

noun

any of various diseases of plants, esp the collapse and death of seedlings caused by the parasitic fungus Pythium debaryanum and related fungi in conditions of excessive moisture

damp

adjective

slightly wet, as from dew, steam, etc
archaic dejected

noun

slight wetness; moisture; humidity
rank air or poisonous gas, esp in a mineSee also firedamp
a discouragement; damper
archaic dejection

verb (tr)

to make slightly wet
(often foll by down) to stifle or deadento damp one's ardour
(often foll by down) to reduce the flow of air to (a fire) to make it burn more slowly or to extinguish it
physics to reduce the amplitude of (an oscillation or wave)
music to muffle (the sound of an instrument)
See also damp off
Derived Formsdampish, adjectivedamply, adverbdampness, noun

Word Origin for damp

C14: from Middle Low German damp steam; related to Old High German demphen to cause to steam
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for damping off
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Science definitions for damping off

damping off

Any of various diseases of seedlings that are caused by oomycetes, especially of the genus Pythium, or by fungi, and result in wilting and death.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.