Answer: Damped vs. Tamped
From china_shop: Which is correct: "he tamped down his excitement" or "he damped down his excitement"?
With examples from Harry Potter, The Mighty Boosh, and Death Note...
The short answer to your question is that, strictly speaking, neither of those examples is incorrect. To get a better understanding of the tone that each choice lends to the sentence, however, it would benefit us to look a little closer.
To know when to best use tamped vs. damped, it will help to first look at their root words and what they mean.
Tamp
1.to drive in or down by a succession of light or medium blows
2.to put a check on (tamp down rumours)
When the word 'tamp' is used, it suggests some amount of time spent on containment, or effort tried.
Damp
1a: to affect with or as if with a noxious gas (choke)
b: to diminish the activity or intensity of
c: to check the vibration or oscillation of (as a string or voltage)
When the word 'damp' is used, it speaks to effect. I will note that, in doing my research, I came across 'damped' used most commonly in the context of scientific physical research. Even when you're not speaking about physics though, the mention of oscillation and vibration adds an interesting dimension to the word choice.
Tamp and damp are both transitive verbs, meaning that they require you to use not only the verb, but one or more objects as well. Some examples of this in the past tense are:
Harry tamped the tent pegs into the cold, hard ground, while Ron unrolled the canvas to stretch across them.
Vince tamped down the rumours that he was Howard's wife by telling people that Howard did his hair and made his tea.
Mello tamped down the thrill his proximity to Matt gave him by thinking of things that had pissed him off that day.
Techno Mouse seemed damped by the smoke from Naboo's hookah, but a few minutes in the ambient hutch cleared his lungs and lightened his limbs.
As annoying as Matt could find Mello, it was his presence alone that damped the stress and seeming vibration of the room around him.
One has to be careful, however, when using 'damped'. Sometimes people use it when what they really mean is 'dampened'. To borrow from Paul Brians:
"When the vibration of a wheel is reduced it is damped, but when you drive through a puddle your tire is dampened. “Dampened” always has to do with wetting, if only metaphorically: “The announcement that Bob’s parents were staying home after all dampened the spirits of the party-goers.” The parents are being a wet blanket."
Therefore:
Ron's spirits were dampened by Hermione's tirade, but they couldn't be completely destroyed.
There is not a large amount of difference in 'tamp' vs. 'damp', but when used for a purpose similar to the one in the suggestion it is really a choice between 'tamp' or 'dampen'. Just remember the tent peg and the wet blanket and you should be alright.
With examples from Harry Potter, The Mighty Boosh, and Death Note...
The short answer to your question is that, strictly speaking, neither of those examples is incorrect. To get a better understanding of the tone that each choice lends to the sentence, however, it would benefit us to look a little closer.
To know when to best use tamped vs. damped, it will help to first look at their root words and what they mean.
Tamp
1.to drive in or down by a succession of light or medium blows
2.to put a check on (tamp down rumours)
When the word 'tamp' is used, it suggests some amount of time spent on containment, or effort tried.
Damp
1a: to affect with or as if with a noxious gas (choke)
b: to diminish the activity or intensity of
c: to check the vibration or oscillation of (as a string or voltage)
When the word 'damp' is used, it speaks to effect. I will note that, in doing my research, I came across 'damped' used most commonly in the context of scientific physical research. Even when you're not speaking about physics though, the mention of oscillation and vibration adds an interesting dimension to the word choice.
Tamp and damp are both transitive verbs, meaning that they require you to use not only the verb, but one or more objects as well. Some examples of this in the past tense are:
Harry tamped the tent pegs into the cold, hard ground, while Ron unrolled the canvas to stretch across them.
Vince tamped down the rumours that he was Howard's wife by telling people that Howard did his hair and made his tea.
Mello tamped down the thrill his proximity to Matt gave him by thinking of things that had pissed him off that day.
Techno Mouse seemed damped by the smoke from Naboo's hookah, but a few minutes in the ambient hutch cleared his lungs and lightened his limbs.
As annoying as Matt could find Mello, it was his presence alone that damped the stress and seeming vibration of the room around him.
One has to be careful, however, when using 'damped'. Sometimes people use it when what they really mean is 'dampened'. To borrow from Paul Brians:
"When the vibration of a wheel is reduced it is damped, but when you drive through a puddle your tire is dampened. “Dampened” always has to do with wetting, if only metaphorically: “The announcement that Bob’s parents were staying home after all dampened the spirits of the party-goers.” The parents are being a wet blanket."
Therefore:
Ron's spirits were dampened by Hermione's tirade, but they couldn't be completely destroyed.
There is not a large amount of difference in 'tamp' vs. 'damp', but when used for a purpose similar to the one in the suggestion it is really a choice between 'tamp' or 'dampen'. Just remember the tent peg and the wet blanket and you should be alright.