dry

DRY/dɹaɪ/

Adjectivedrier, dryer, driest, dryest

Verbdries, drying, dried

Noun pluraldrys, dries

30 meanings of dry

Practice

1
adjective
Not wet or damp, with no water in it.
Like a towel after it hangs in the sun all day.
The clothes are dry now, so you can fold them.
She kept her socks dry by wearing tall boots.
UsageSay drier and driest.
Similarparched
Oppositewet, damp, moist, humid
Note
2
remove waterverbtransitive
To make something dry, or to become dry, as in 'dry your hands' or 'the paint dried'.
Like wiping a wet table with a paper towel until it is clean.
Please dry the dishes with this towel.
She dried her hands on her apron.
UsageDry your eyes means stop crying.
Oppositewet, moisten, dampen, soak
Note
3
adjective
Having little or no rain, used about weather, a place, or a period of time.
It was a very dry summer, and the farmers kept hoping for rain.
They moved to a dry part of the country where it hardly ever rains.
UsageWe say a dry spell or a dry summer.
Similararid, rainless
Oppositewet, rainy
4
adjective
Done without the water, oil, or other liquid that is usually used, for example when shaving or cooking.
He gave himself a quick dry shave with an electric razor in the car.
Dry roasting peanuts in a pan with no oil keeps them crunchy.
Oppositewet
5
not sweet (wine)adjective
Not sweet, with little or no sugar.
Like lemon water with no sugar added.
She prefers a dry wine with dinner.
This cider is dry, not sweet at all.
Oppositesweet
Note
6
boringadjective
Plain and not lively, so it feels boring, as in 'a dry report'.
Like eating plain crackers with nothing on them.
The lecture was so dry that half the class fell asleep.
He gave a dry report that was just numbers and dates.
UsageOften dull and dry.
Similardull, boring, tedious, uninteresting, lifeless
Oppositelively, interesting, engaging, exciting
Note
7
nouncountable
The act of making something not wet.
The towels need a quick dry in the sun.
Give your hair a gentle dry with the towel.
UsageSay give it a dry.
8
use upverbfigurativelytransitive
To use something up completely until none is left.
Like spending all your money until your wallet is empty.
The crisis dried up all the money the company had saved.
Years of heavy spending can dry up a family's savings.
UsageOften dry up money or funds.
Similardrain, exhaust, deplete
Oppositereplenish
Note
9
season without rainnounAustraliawith the
The time of year when there is little or no rain.
Like the long stretch of summer when the grass turns brown for lack of rain.
In the dry, the river shrinks to a few small pools.
Animals gather near the lake all through the dry.
UsageSay the Dry and the Wet.
Oppositewet
Note

Less common meanings

10
quietly funnyadjective
Funny in a calm, serious way, without smiling or laughing.
Like someone telling a joke without ever laughing at it.
He told the joke with a dry, serious face.
Her dry sense of humor always catches people off guard.
UsageWe say dry humor or a dry joke.
Similardeadpan, wry, droll, laconic, ironic
Note
11
sales banned (alcohol)adjective
With no alcohol, as in a dry wedding or a dry county, or of a person, not drinking any.
Like a town with a rule that no shop can sell beer or wine.
They live in a dry county where no store sells beer.
The town stayed dry until the law finally changed.
Oppositewet
Note
12
adjective
Not able to give any liquid, like water, oil, or milk.
Like an empty bottle with nothing left to pour.
The old well is dry and gives no water.
The cow went dry and stopped giving milk.
UsageOften run dry.
Similarunproductive, empty, exhausted, depleted
Oppositeproductive
Note
13
in a slumpadjective
Going through a time with no work or little happening.
Like a well that stops giving water for a while.
My cousin hit a dry spell and found no work all summer.
Things have been dry at the shop since the holidays.
UsageUse a dry spell: We're going through a dry spell at work.
Similarslow, quiet, idle, slack
Oppositebusy, booming
Note
14
missing somethingadjective
Without something that is usually added or involved, like toast with no butter or a practice run.
Like a birthday with no cake: something important is missing.
There was nothing to spread on it, so we ate the bread dry.
The baby gave a dry sob, but no tears came.
15
ginger ale mixernoununcountable
A pale, less sweet kind of ginger ale, often mixed into other drinks.
Dad always orders a rum and dry at the club.
I'll have a gin and dry, please.
UsageSay whisky and dry.
Note
16
no reverbadjective
Recorded with no added sound effects, like echo or reverb.
Like a photo before you add any filters to it.
The engineer kept the vocals dry, with no echo added.
They recorded a dry guitar track and added effects later.
Oppositewet
17
no mortaradjective
Describes a wall made of stones stacked together with no cement or mortar.
Like a tower of blocks that stays up just by balancing.
Old dry stone walls, built with no mortar, divide the fields.
They built a dry wall by carefully stacking flat rocks.
UsageStones are laid dry.
Note
18
alcohol opponentnounUScountable
A person who wants alcohol to be banned by law.
During Prohibition, the drys fought hard to keep alcohol illegal.
As a dry, she voted for a law to ban all alcohol.
UsagePlural: drys. The other side: wets.
Similarprohibitionist
Oppositewet
Note
19
forget linesverbcolloquialintransitive
To forget your lines while acting on stage.
Like suddenly forgetting the words to a song you know well.
He dried during the big speech and stood there blankly.
Young actors often dry when they get nervous on stage.
Similarblank, freeze
Note
20
no venomadjective
Describes a bite from a poisonous animal that puts no poison into the wound.
Like a warning snap that doesn't actually harm you.
Luckily the bite was dry, with no poison in it.
A dry bite from the spider left only a small red mark.
UsageMostly dry bite.
Note
21
computer-basedadjective
Describes science work done on computers instead of with real living things or chemicals.
Like planning a trip on a map instead of actually walking the route.
She does the dry work, using computer models instead of test tubes.
She works in a dry lab, using computers instead of test tubes.
UsageDry lab versus wet lab.
Similarcomputational
Oppositewet
22
hard-edged (art)adjective
Describes art that is sharp and exact, with no soft edges or gentle color blends.
Like a picture drawn with a hard pencil instead of soft chalk.
The painting looked dry, with sharp lines and no soft shading.
His dry drawing style uses clean edges instead of gentle blends.
Note
23
no brothadjectiveMalaysiaSingapore
Describes noodles or a similar dish served mixed with sauce, not in soup.
He likes his noodles dry, mixed with sauce.
Order it dry if you don't want any soup.
UsageAsk for noodles dry or in soup.
Note
24
place without rainnoun
A place with little or no rain, or one sheltered from the rain.
Like a covered porch that stays out of the rain.
Come inside and get into the dry before you catch a cold.
Keep the firewood in the dry so it burns well.
UsageSay in the dry.
Note
25
thirstyadjectivecolloquialfiguratively
Very thirsty, or strongly wanting something.
Like being so thirsty you can't wait for a drink.
After the long walk in the sun, I was dry and needed a drink.
I'm a bit dry. Can we stop for a cold drink?
Similarthirsty, eager, keen
Note
26
adjective
Used about a cough that brings nothing up from your throat or lungs.
She has had a dry cough for a week.
His cough was dry and kept him awake at night.
Similarnonproductive
Oppositeproductive, wet, chesty
27
adjective
Describes a church service held without blessing bread and wine or giving communion.
28
adjective
Describes a jet engine running without the extra boosters that add power.
29
adjective
In poker, describes shared cards that give players few ways to make strong hands.
30
nounBritishUK
In Britain, a hard right-wing Conservative, especially a backer of Thatcher's policies.

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of dry apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

The words 'dry' come from Old English, from an old Germanic word meaning dry or hard. The verb came the same way from an Old English word meaning 'to dry'.

Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 3 facts

The adjective and noun 'dry' derive from Old English. en.wiktionary.org
The Old English word derives from a Germanic word meaning 'dry' or 'hard'. en.wiktionary.org
The verb also derives through Old English from Germanic, with the Old English verb meaning 'to dry'. en.wiktionary.org