wet blanket

noun

: one that quenches or dampens enthusiasm or pleasure

Examples of wet blanket in a Sentence

I'd love to go to the party, but with my cold, I'm afraid I'd just be a wet blanket.
Recent Examples on the Web While the spontaneous Moon in your 9th House of Travel conflicts with wet blanket Saturn in your anxious 12th house, your own inhibitions could be a bigger obstacle. Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 4 Feb. 2024 Don’t be a texting wet blanket Striking some particular tone is less important than matching your conversation partner’s energy. Tatum Hunter, Washington Post, 1 Sep. 2023 Water Resistance Want to avoid a soggy, wet blanket? Erica Zazo, Popular Mechanics, 31 July 2023 Data for the first half of 2022 from some provinces and cities indicate further drops in births compared with last year, as Covid restrictions have kept tens of millions of Chinese at a time cooped up in their apartments and put a wet blanket on economic activity across the country. Liyan Qi, WSJ, 4 Sep. 2022 As the vibrant Sun in your communication sector is smothered by wet blanket Saturn in your inhibited 12th house, your fears of being misunderstood could provoke you to clam up. Tarot Astrologers, Chicago Tribune, 28 May 2023 The intergovernmental Financial Action Task Force (FATF) will be all over El Salvadoran banks, businesses, and other financial institutions like a wet blanket . . . Andrew Stuttaford, National Review, 16 July 2021 Previous studies have established that tickling is mood-dependent—anxiety and unfamiliarity suppress it like a wet blanket. Max G. Levy, WIRED, 6 Oct. 2022 News of still-hot inflation was a wet blanket for markets, which had been holding out for signs that might nudge the Fed to put a brake on interest rate hikes. Heard Editors, WSJ, 24 Feb. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wet blanket.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1844, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of wet blanket was in 1844

Dictionary Entries Near wet blanket

Cite this Entry

“Wet blanket.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wet%20blanket. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

wet blanket

noun
: one that discourages or puts an end to enthusiasm or pleasure
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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