as in wet blanket
a person who spoils the pleasure of others
a party pooper who insisted they turn the music down
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Recent Examples of party pooper
But none of the Premier League’s refs or growing cohort of specialist VARs revel in the role of party pooper.
—
Graham Scott, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
But in their quest to make history, the guests turned into party poopers.
—The San Diego Union Tribune, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Sep. 2025
In the co-main event, Zhang Mingyang proved to be the ultimate party pooper.
—Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 27 Apr. 2025
Despite his literal change of heart, the Grinch continues to symbolize holiday party poopers everywhere.
—Mike Miller, People.com, 19 Dec. 2024
Mosquitoes are, in fact, hellish little bugs that take the gold for summer’s biggest party poopers.
—Katie Camero, SELF, 25 July 2024
If a particular segment goes over your head, just wait for the next one; who but the most humorless party pooper wouldn’t enjoy watching mental-health professionals diagnose comedians, including Mulaney, based on clips of their standup specials?
—Judy Berman, TIME, 10 May 2024
Graham Scott, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
But in their quest to make history, the guests turned into party poopers.
—The San Diego Union Tribune, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Sep. 2025
In the co-main event, Zhang Mingyang proved to be the ultimate party pooper.
—Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 27 Apr. 2025
Despite his literal change of heart, the Grinch continues to symbolize holiday party poopers everywhere.
—Mike Miller, People.com, 19 Dec. 2024
Mosquitoes are, in fact, hellish little bugs that take the gold for summer’s biggest party poopers.
—Katie Camero, SELF, 25 July 2024
If a particular segment goes over your head, just wait for the next one; who but the most humorless party pooper wouldn’t enjoy watching mental-health professionals diagnose comedians, including Mulaney, based on clips of their standup specials?
—Judy Berman, TIME, 10 May 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for party pooper
Noun
-
But the rivalry between these teams runs deep, and the Penguins tried hard to throw a wet blanket on the Capitals' playoff hopes and Ovechkin's big day.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
12 Apr. 2026
-
Regardless, the new hard-line stance on playing time was a wet blanket tossed onto an overachieving team.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Upstairs, in the bubble gum-pink Powder Room, Shahniani keeps his drag costumes, made by his favorite dressmaker, Kelsey Swarthout, who uses upcycled Disney sheets in her designs.—
Lisa Boone,
Los Angeles Times,
15 Apr. 2026
-
Most of these use a hand crank to churn, which can be a novelty at first, but a drag as the process wears on.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The plant provides habitat for fish, crabs and plankton, feeds migratory birds and locks away carbon and methane — both heat-trapping greenhouse gases — in coastal sediments.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Their diet includes fish, squid, crabs, krill and other sea life.—
Samantha Agate,
Miami Herald,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
As the North bore down on Saigon, Thieu begged for American financial support, but Congress was in no mood to pour more millions into the black hole of Southeast Asia.—
Louis Menand,
New Yorker,
13 Apr. 2026
-
The one block square bore witness to Sacramento’s history.—
Ishani Desai,
Sacbee.com,
6 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
March 2026 Prose's debut novel is centered around Molly Gray, a 25-year-old maid at the Regency Grand Hotel, a five-star boutique hotel, who has an obsessive love of cleaning and proper etiquette.—
Angeline Jane Bernabe,
ABC News,
3 Mar. 2026
-
These ajummas, these old maids, with their curly hair, were actually doing this!—
Scott Feinberg,
HollywoodReporter,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Which poem, and why did the killjoys at the magazine turn it down?—
Anthony Lane,
New Yorker,
22 Mar. 2026
-
Such means of interpretation, according to a killjoy like Bellow, reduces the complexity, interiority, and negative capability of literature into the work of a cryptologist trying to crack a code, of an occultist parsing scripture for hidden meanings.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
23 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Party pooper.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/party%20pooper. Accessed 21 Apr. 2026.
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