# dry

/ˈdɹaɪ/ (US) · /dɹˈaɪ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/dry
Updated: 2026-08-15

## Senses

### 1. not wet

adjective · CEFR A1

not wet or not covered in water.

For teachers: free from or lacking moisture or liquid on a surface or within a substance.

- Make sure your hands are dry before you touch the electrical plug.
- The desert air was so dry that any perspiration evaporated almost instantly, leaving a fine salt crust on the skin.

### 2. not sweet

adjective · CEFR B1

used to describe wine or other drinks that are not sweet.

For teachers: denoting a drink, especially wine, in which the natural sugars have been mostly converted to alcohol during fermentation.

- I prefer a dry white wine with my grilled fish.
- The sommelier recommended a particularly dry Riesling to balance the richness of the cream-based sauce.

### 3. boring or serious

adjective · CEFR B2

boring, very serious, or without any interesting details.

For teachers: lacking interest, warmth, or embellishment; often used to describe academic or technical prose.

- The history textbook was so dry that I fell asleep while reading.
- The lecture was a dry recitation of statistics that failed to capture the human impact of the economic crisis.

### 4. humour

adjective · CEFR B2

a way of being funny while looking very serious.

For teachers: referring to a form of subtle, understated humour delivered with a straight face.

- He has a very dry sense of humour that some people don't understand.
- Her dry wit often went unnoticed by those who expected more obvious physical comedy or punchlines.

### 5. no alcohol allowed

adjective · CEFR C1 · Formal

a place where selling or drinking alcohol is not allowed.

For teachers: prohibiting the sale or consumption of alcoholic beverages.

- Some counties in the southern United States are still dry.
- The university decided to make the entire campus a dry zone to discourage underage drinking during the festival.

### 6. to remove moisture

verb · CEFR A2

to make something dry by wiping it or leaving it in the air.

For teachers: to cause to become dry; to remove moisture from a surface or substance.

- Hang your wet towel outside so it can dry in the sun.
- The laboratory technician used a centrifuge to dry the samples before weighing them for the final analysis.

### 7. to forget lines

verb · CEFR C2 · Informal · Technical

when an actor suddenly forgets what they are supposed to say during a play.

For teachers: to forget one's lines during a theatrical performance.

- The lead actor dried in the middle of the second act.
- Even seasoned professionals occasionally dry under the pressure of a live opening night audience.

### 8. the dry season

noun · CEFR B2 · Dialect

the time of year when there is very little rain.

For teachers: the annual period of low rainfall in tropical climates.

- We usually travel to the north during the dry to avoid the floods.
- During the dry, the landscape transforms from lush green to a dusty, golden brown as the waterholes vanish.

Usage: Usually used with 'the'.

Teaching tip: Commonly used in Australia and other tropical regions to distinguish from the monsoon or rainy season.

## Examples

- The clothes are finally dry after hanging outside.
- The hikers were relieved to find a dry cave where they could wait for the storm to pass.
- The region has experienced an unusually dry summer, leading to strict water conservation measures and a high risk of wildfires in the surrounding forests.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.