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Synonyms

bone-dry

American  
[bohn-drahy] / ˈboʊnˈdraɪ /

adjective

  1. very dry.

  2. very thirsty.

  3. Slang. dry.

  4. Ceramics. (of clay) thoroughly dried.


bone-dry British  

adjective

  1. informal

    1. completely dry

      a bone-dry well

    2. ( postpositive )

      the well was bone dry

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of bone-dry

First recorded in 1815–25

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Allegra Goodman’s family saga coaxes, in Sam Sacks’s words, “excellent, bone-dry humor” out of the skirmishes and long-running battles among members of a loving, fractious clan.

From The Wall Street Journal Feb. 27, 2026

De Angelis and Waltz are also a hoot together, she as a heaving, hissing vampire bride who can’t stop licking her chops, he as a bone-dry vampire hunter dedicated to his investigation.

From Los Angeles Times Feb. 6, 2026

“This Is Not About Us” mines excellent, bone-dry humor from the neuroses.

From The Wall Street Journal Feb. 5, 2026

But, she said, the landscape will remain bone-dry.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 30, 2025

There were plenty of washed-up logs and sticks on the island, and under the bridge the wood was bone-dry.

From "The Honest Truth" by Dan Gemeinhart

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