dry up
Britishverb
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(intr) to become barren or unproductive; fail
in middle age his inspiration dried up
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to dry (dishes, cutlery, etc) with a tea towel after they have been washed
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informal (intr) to stop talking or speaking
when I got on the stage I just dried up
dry up!
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Gradually become unproductive, as in After two collections of short stories, his ability to write fiction dried up . Also see well's run dry .
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Stop talking; also, cause to stop talking. For example, Dry up! You've said enough . [ Slang ; mid-1800s]
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.
Authorities say as the reservoir continues to dry up, there’s a higher probability that more skeletal remains will be discovered.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026
If flowering plants begin to dry up, they produce less.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
There was no reason to expect his form to dry up the moment he boarded a flight across the Atlantic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
But experts say it is likely to become even more crucial in the knockout rounds, when defenses are tighter and chances from open play dry up.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026
Next morning, as things started to dry up, the sheriff saw those books and bottles floating in the river and figured Upton was floating there too.
From "The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs" by Betty G. Birney
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
