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Why can't "dampen" be applied to oscillators? It means "To lessen; to dull; to make less intense" in this case.

i think the point is that it's one of those words misused so widely that dictionaries updated the definition to include the incorrect use.

dampen means to make something wet, or at least originally that's what it meant

According to https://www.etymonline.com/word/dampen it's meant "to dull or deaden, make weak" from 1630s and "to moisten, make humid" from 1827.