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- DictionaryDry/drī/
adjective
- 1. free from moisture or liquid; not wet or moist: "the jacket kept me warm and dry" Similar parcheddriedwitheredshriveledwiltedwizenedcrispcrispybrittledehydrateddesiccatedsun-bakedsaplessjuicelessOpposite fresh
- ▪ having lost all wetness or moisture over a period of time: "dry paint"
- ▪ for use without liquid: "the conversion of dry latrines into flush toilets"
- ▪ with little or no rainfall or humidity: "the West Coast has had two dry winters in a row" Similar aridparchedscorchedbakedburneddried up/outtorridhotsizzlingburningwaterlessmoisturelessrainlessdehydrateddesiccatedthirstyas dry as a bonebone dryas dry as dustrare:droughtytorrefiedOpposite wet
- ▪ (of a river, lake, or stream) empty of water as a result of evaporation and lack of rainfall: "the river is always dry at this time of year" Similar waterlessdried outempty
- ▪ (of a source) not yielding a supply of water or oil: "a dry well"
- ▪ thirsty or thirst-making: "working in the hot sun is making me dry" Similar thirstydehydratedlonging for a drinkinformal:parchedgaspingthirst-makingthirst-provokingthirstyhotstrenuousarduousheavytiringexhausting
- ▪ (of a cow or other domestic animal) having stopped producing milk: "the rye has been strip-grazed by dry cows"
- ▪ without grease or other moisturizer or lubricator: "cream conditioners for dry hair"
- ▪ (of bread or toast) without butter or other spreads: "only dry bread and water" Similar unbutteredplainbutterless
- ▪ (of noodles) not served in a soup, but in a sauce or with dry ingredients: SE Asian "customers can choose to have their noodles in the soup or opt for a dry version"
- 2. (of information, writing, etc.) dealing primarily with facts and presented in a dull, uninteresting way: "he not only avoids dry accounts of regimes and rulers, but enables the reader to feel how the substance of daily life has changed" Similar baresimplebasicfundamentalstarknakedbaldcoldhardstraightforwardunadornedunembellisheddulluninterestingboringunexcitingtedioustiresomewearisomedrearymonotonousdry as dustaridunimaginativesterileflatblandinsipidlacklusterstodgycolorlesslifelessprosaicrun-of-the-millhumdrummundanecommonplaceworkadayquotidianroutinevapidstiffleadenwoodeninformal:deadlysameydreichOpposite embellishedinterestinglively
- ▪ unemotional, undemonstrative, or impassive: "it transformed him from a dry administrator into the people's hero" Similar unemotionalindifferentundemonstrativeimpassivecoolcoldclinicalpassionlessemotionlessaloofreservedremotedistantrestrainedimpersonalformalstiffrigidwoodenstarchyOpposite emotionalexpressive
- 3. (of a joke or sense of humor) subtle, expressed in a matter-of-fact way, and having the appearance of being unconscious or unintentional: "he delighted his friends with a dry, covert sense of humor" Similar wrysubtlelow-keylaconicslysharpdeadpanstraight-facedpoker-facedironicsardonicsarcasticcynicalmordantbitingsatiricalmockingscoffingdrollwaggishinformal:sarky
- 4. prohibiting the sale or consumption of alcoholic drink: "Indiana stayed dry after the end of prohibition" Similar Prohibitionistteetotalalcohol-freenondrinkingabstinentcleansoberinformal:on the wagonstraight
- ▪ (of a person) no longer addicted to or drinking alcohol: "I heard much talk about how sobriety was more than staying straight or dry"
- 5. (of an alcoholic drink) not sweet: "a dry, medium-bodied red wine" Similar crispsharppiquantnot sweettartbitterOpposite sweet
verb
- 1. become dry: "allow 24 hours for the paint to dry"
- ▪ cause to become dry: "they had washed and dried their hair" Similar make drydry out/upparchscorchsearbakedehydratedesiccatedehumidifydry offtoweltowel-dryrubmop upblot upsoak upabsorbsop upclean updrainOpposite moisten
- ▪ wipe tears from (the eyes): "she dried her eyes and blew her nose" Similar wipewipe tears fromrubdab
- ▪ preserve by allowing or encouraging evaporation of moisture from: "I use several methods to dry the flowers and foliage I use in my arrangements" Similar dry updehydratedesiccatewithershrivelwiltwizenmummifydesiccatedehydrateremove the moisture frompreservecuresmokeOpposite moisten
- 2. forget one's lines: theatrical slang "a colleague of mine once dried in the middle of a scene"
noun
- 1. a person in favor of the prohibition of alcohol.
Word Origin Old Englishdrȳge (adjective), drȳgan (verb), of Germanic origin; related to Middle Low German dröge, Dutch droog, and German trocken.
Derivatives
- 1. dryish adjective
Scrabble Points: 7
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2R
1Y
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