Dope is any narcotic or illegal drug (especially cannabis). More specifically, it is a narcotic used on race horses to improve or hold back their performance in a race. In technical use, dope is any thick liquid or pasty preparation used in preparing a surface, particularly a varnish for coating airplane wings. As a slang term, dope can mean ‘stupid person’ or, mainly in…
If something is damp, it means that it’s slightly wet. Figuratively, damp also means ‘unenthusiastic or depressed.’ Damp, as a noun, is moisture or humidity. Figuratively, it is a depression of spirits or a discouraging thing, although these meanings are now dated. As a verb, it means ‘to moisten or make slightly wet’ or, if we are talking about a fire, ‘to extinguish’ or ‘to stifle,’ so that it burns very slowly. Figuratively, it can…
A ram is a male sheep and also a device for battering, crushing, or forcing something. Related to this last sense, to ram means ‘to strike with force,’ ‘to stuff or cram,’ or, figuratively, ‘to force or push firmly.’ Unrelatedly, the acronym RAM, in computing, stands for random access memory, and it is the computer memory available to…
A bog is an area of wet, moist, and spongy ground and the verb to bog, usually followed by down, means ‘to sink in or as if in such an area.’ In UK slang, bog means ‘toilet’ and, if you are talking about a public toilet or the toilet facilities in a establishment open to the public, like a bar or restaurant, then the word is often…
