damp squib
noun
British
: something that is disappointing because it is not as exciting or effective as expected
The company's stock turned out to be something of a damp squib.
Examples of damp squib in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Monday’s damp squib in Burnley did not help the narrative.
—
Beren Cross, The Athletic, 3 Feb. 2025
The contrast between this damp squib of an evening and their respective first jobs back in 2014 couldn’t be more stark.
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2024
People have always made overblown promises for AI, which have inevitably ended in a damp squib.
—Ravi Mayuram, Forbes, 27 Jan. 2022
If the Moonlight–La La Land mix-up was the ultimate Hollywood ending, this was the opposite: a damp squib of an anticlimax and a colossal own goal on the part of Soderbergh and his team.
—Nate Jones, Vulture, 26 Apr. 2021
Whether President Biden’s moonshot lifts off or turns out to be a damp squib will hinge largely on how the administration engages private landowners.
—Brian Yablonski, National Review, 15 Mar. 2021
This political backdrop raises the possibility that his low-energy announcement speech may be a damp squib.
—The Editors, National Review, 15 Nov. 2022
It cannot be avoided, however, that after the giddy sugar rush of season one, season two was a bit of a damp squib overall.
—Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 22 Sep. 2022
Not even the buzziest stars could stop the result from looking like a damp squib: an empty shell of clichéd American references (the varsity jacket!
—Vanessa Friedman, New York Times, 17 Sep. 2022
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Beren Cross, The Athletic, 3 Feb. 2025
The contrast between this damp squib of an evening and their respective first jobs back in 2014 couldn’t be more stark.
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2024
People have always made overblown promises for AI, which have inevitably ended in a damp squib.
—Ravi Mayuram, Forbes, 27 Jan. 2022
If the Moonlight–La La Land mix-up was the ultimate Hollywood ending, this was the opposite: a damp squib of an anticlimax and a colossal own goal on the part of Soderbergh and his team.
—Nate Jones, Vulture, 26 Apr. 2021
Whether President Biden’s moonshot lifts off or turns out to be a damp squib will hinge largely on how the administration engages private landowners.
—Brian Yablonski, National Review, 15 Mar. 2021
This political backdrop raises the possibility that his low-energy announcement speech may be a damp squib.
—The Editors, National Review, 15 Nov. 2022
It cannot be avoided, however, that after the giddy sugar rush of season one, season two was a bit of a damp squib overall.
—Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 22 Sep. 2022
Not even the buzziest stars could stop the result from looking like a damp squib: an empty shell of clichéd American references (the varsity jacket!
—Vanessa Friedman, New York Times, 17 Sep. 2022
Dictionary Entries Near damp squib
Cite this Entry
“Damp squib.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/damp%20squib. Accessed 11 Feb. 2025.
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