dam
dam / dăm noun a wall built across a river or lake that controls water flow Words, like tranquil waters behind a dam, can become reckless and uncontrollable torrents of destruction when released without caution and wisdom. William Arthur Ward, 1921 - 1994 a barrier controlling the flow of liquids or other matter Law and order exist for the purpose of establishing justice and when they fail in this purpose they become the dangerously structured dams that block the flow of social progress. Martin Luther King, Jr., 1929 - 1968 a body of water contained by a wall or other barrier With irrigation channels and rivers running dry and municipal water storage dams reaching record lows, California's politicians are getting desperate for solutions to a drought that seemingly has no end. Marc Levine, 1974 - the mother of a domestic animal Those rocky islands the ship had passed were the resort of great numbers of seals, and some young seals that had lost their dams, or some dams that had lost their cubs, must have risen nigh the ship and kept company with her, crying and sobbing with their human sort of wail. From “Moby Dick” by Herman Melville, 1819 – 1891 verb to retain water or control its flow by means of a constructed barrier It is easier to dam a river than to stop gossip. Filipino Proverb to obstruct; to block How prone poor Humanity is to dam up the minutest remnants of its freedom, and build an artificial roof to prevent it looking up to the clear blue sky. T. A. Hoffmann, 1776 - 1822 damn damn / dăm adjective repugnant, detestable And he's bad, bad Leroy Brown The baddest man in the whole damn town Badder than old King Kong Meaner than a junkyard dog Lyrics from the song “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” by Jim Croce, 1943- 1973 adjective, adverb (prenomial) (slang) used to add emphasis Every man is a damn fool for at least five minutes every day; wisdom consists in not exceeding the limit. Elbert Hubbard, 1856 – 1915 adverb extremely Why is it so damn hard for people to talk? Tennessee Williams, 1911 - 1983 noun nothing at all Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn. From the 1939 movie “Gone with the Wind” interjection used to express anger, contempt or annoyance Damn! I don't have that much time! Mitch Hedberg, 1968 – 2005 verb to curse or swear Do your duty as you see it, and damn the consequences. George S. Patton, 1885 - 1945 to condemn to failure, ruin or some other terrible fate Better have men reproach you for being good, than have God damn you for being wicked. Thomas Watson, c. 1620 - 1686 to judge as a failure Acquittal of the guilty damns the judge. Horace, 65 BC - 8 BC to condemn to eternal hell The man who is always worrying whether or not his soul would be damned generally has a soul that isn't worth a damn. Oliver Wendell Holmes, 1809 - 1894 to denounce or criticize greatly You'll be damned if you do, and damned if you don't. Eleanor Roosevelt, 1884 - 1962