a person or thing that damps or depresses

His glum mood put a damper on their party.

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

Music .

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

the mute of a brass instrument, as a horn.

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.

Machinery . a shock absorber.

Australian .

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

the dough for such cakes.

noun

depressant , chill , wet blanket , restraint