dry

[ drahy ]

/ draɪ /

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adjective, dri·er, dri·est.

free from moisture or excess moisture; not moist; not wet: a dry towel; dry air.

having or characterized by little or no rain: a dry climate; the dry season.

characterized by absence, deficiency, or failure of natural or ordinary moisture.

not under, in, or on water: It was good to be on dry land.

not now containing or yielding water or other liquid; depleted or empty of liquid: The well is dry.

not yielding milk: a dry cow.

free from tears: dry eyes.

drained or evaporated away: a dry river.

desiring drink; thirsty: He was so dry he could hardly speak.

causing thirst: dry work.

served or eaten without butter, jam, etc.: dry toast.

(of cooked food) lacking enough moisture or juice to be satisfying or succulent.

(of bread and bakery products) stale.

of or relating to nonliquid substances or commodities: dry measure; dry provisions.

(of wines) not sweet.

(of a cocktail)

made with dry vermouth: a dry Manhattan.
made with relatively little dry vermouth: a dry martini.

characterized by or favoring prohibition of the manufacture and sale of alcoholic liquors for use in beverages: a dry state.

(of British biscuits) not sweet.

plain; bald; unadorned: dry facts.

dull; uninteresting: a dry subject.

expressed in a straight-faced, matter-of-fact way: dry humor.

indifferent; cold; unemotional: a dry answer.

unproductive: The greatest of artists have dry years.

(of lumber) fully seasoned.

Building Trades.

(of masonry construction) built without fresh mortar or cement.
(of a wall, ceiling, etc., in an interior) finished without the use of fresh plaster.

Ceramics.

unglazed.
insufficiently glazed.

Art. hard and formal in outline, or lacking mellowness and warmth in color.

verb (used with object), dried, dry·ing.

to make dry; free from moisture: to dry the dishes.

verb (used without object), dried, dry·ing.

to become dry; lose moisture.

noun, plural drys, dries.

a prohibitionist.

a dry place, area, or region.

Verb Phrases

dry out,

to make or become completely dry.
to undergo or cause to undergo detoxification from consumption of excessive amounts of alcohol.

dry up,

to make or become completely dry.
to cease to exist; evaporate.
Informal. to stop talking.
(in acting) to forget one's lines or part.

Nearby words

druse, drusilla, drusus, druthers, druze, dry, dry abscess, dry adiabatic lapse rate, dry as dust, dry battery, dry beer

Idioms

not dry behind the ears, immature; unsophisticated: Adult responsibilities were forced on him, although he was still not dry behind the ears.

Origin of dry

before 900; Middle English drie, Old English drȳge; akin to Dutch droog, German trocken; see drought

SYNONYMS FOR dry

20 tedious, barren, boring, tiresome, jejune.

29 dehydrate.

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ANTONYMS FOR dry

1 wet.

20 interesting.

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Related forms

dry·a·ble, adjectivedry·ly, adverbdry·ness, nouno·ver·dry, adjective

o·ver·dry·ly, adverbo·ver·dry·ness, nounpre·dry, verb (used with object), pre·dried, pre·dry·ing.re·dry, verb, re·dried, re·dry·ing.ul·tra·dry, adjectiveun·der·dry, verb (used with object), un·der·dried, un·der·dry·ing.un·dry, adjectiveun·dry·a·ble, adjective

Synonym study

1. Dry, arid both mean without moisture. Dry is the general word indicating absence of water or freedom from moisture: a dry well; dry clothes. Arid suggests great or intense dryness in a region or climate, especially such as results in bareness or in barrenness: arid tracts of desert. 28. See evaporate.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for dry out (1 of 2)

dry out

verb (adverb)

to make or become dry

to undergo or cause to undergo treatment for alcoholism or drug addiction

British Dictionary definitions for dry out (2 of 2)

dry

/ (draɪ) /

adjective drier, driest, dryer or dryest

lacking moisture; not damp or wet

having little or no rainfall

not in or under waterdry land

having the water drained away or evaporateda dry river

not providing milka dry cow

(of the eyes) free from tears

informal in need of a drink; thirsty
causing thirstdry work

eaten without butter, jam, etcdry toast

(of a wine, cider, etc) not sweet

pathol not accompanied by or producing a mucous or watery dischargea dry cough

consisting of solid as opposed to liquid substances or commodities

without adornment; plaindry facts

lacking interest or stimulationa dry book

lacking warmth or emotion; colda dry greeting

(of wit or humour) shrewd and keen in an impersonal, sarcastic, or laconic way

opposed to or prohibiting the sale of alcoholic liquor for human consumptiona dry area

NZ (of a ewe) without a lamb after the mating season

electronics (of a soldered electrical joint) imperfect because the solder has not adhered to the metal, thus reducing conductance

verb dries, drying or dried

(when intr, often foll by off) to make or become dry or free from moisture

(tr) to preserve (meat, vegetables, fruit, etc) by removing the moisture

noun plural drys or dries

British informal a Conservative politician who is considered to be a hard-linerCompare wet (def. 10)

the dry Australian informal the dry season

US and Canadian an informal word for prohibitionist

Derived Forms

dryable, adjectivedryness, noun

Word Origin for dry

Old English drӯge; related to Old High German truckan, Old Norse draugr dry wood

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

Idioms and Phrases with dry out (1 of 2)

dry out

Undergo a cure for alcoholism, as in After years of constant drinking, he realized that he needed to dry out. [1960s]

Idioms and Phrases with dry out (2 of 2)

dry

In addition to the idioms beginning with dry

dry as dust
dry behind the ears
dry out
dry run
dry up

also see:

cut and dried
hang out to dry
high and dry
keep one's powder dry
well's run dry