Phrase guide

dry up

verb · 10 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

verb

Meaning 1

To become dry (often of weather); to lose water.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

Examples

  • I'll go shopping when it dries up.
  • Last summer the lake completely dried up.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: desiccate, dehydrate

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: dry

2

verb

Meaning 2

To cause to become dry.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Examples

  • The heatwave dried up all the rivers.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: desiccate, dehydrate

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: dry

3

verb

Meaning 3

To manually dry dishes and utensils.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: ambitransitive, intransitive

Examples

  • I'll dry up if you wash up.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: dry, wipe up

Antonyms: none provided

4

verb

Meaning 4

To deprive someone of (something vital).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

Examples

  • The bankruptcy rumor dried up his sales.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

verb

Meaning 5

To gradually decrease and eventually cease.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

Examples

  • When our money dried up, we had to get proper jobs.
  • After the stock market crash, the easy financing dried up.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: wither away

Antonyms: none provided

6

verb

Meaning 6

To stop talking because one has forgotten what one was going to say.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

Examples

  • This surprised me so much that I dried up for a moment.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

verb

Meaning 7

To stop talking because one has forgotten what one was going to say.

To forget one's lines.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

verb

Meaning 8

To stop talking or drop a topic.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Qualifier: 1930s US slang

Examples

  • Oh, dry up, you old fuddy-duddy!

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: shut up, clam up

Antonyms: none provided

9

verb

Meaning 9

lose water or moisture

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • In the desert, you get dehydrated very quickly

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: exsiccate, dehydrate, desiccate

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: dry, dry out

10

verb

Meaning 10

dry up and shrivel due to complete loss of moisture

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • a mummified body was found

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: mummify

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: shrivel, shrivel up, shrink, wither

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

38 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Albanian: thaj — to become dry
  • Albanian: ter — to become dry
  • Basque: agortu — to become dry
  • Bulgarian: изсъхвам (izsǎhvam) — to become dry
  • Cornish: deseha — to become dry
  • Cornish: desegha — to become dry
  • Cornish: desygha — to become dry
  • Dutch: opdrogen — to become dry
  • Finnish: kuivua — to become dry
  • German: austrocknen — to become dry
  • German: vertrocknen — to become dry
  • German: verdorren — to become dry
  • German: versiegen — to become dry
  • Gothic: 𐌲𐌰𐌸𐌰𐌿𐍂𐍃𐌽𐌰𐌽 (gaþaursnan) — to become dry
  • Latin: adārēscō — to become dry
  • Lutuv: ky — to become dry
  • Polish: wysychać — to become dry
  • Polish: wyschnąć — to become dry
  • Polish: wyczerpywać się — to become dry
  • Polish: wyczerpać się — to become dry
  • Romanian: se usca — to become dry
  • Sanskrit: शुष्यति (śuṣyati) — to become dry
  • Swedish: sina — to become dry
  • Turkish: kurumak — to become dry
  • Ottoman Turkish: قورومق (kurumak) — to become dry
  • Ugaritic: 𐎃𐎗𐎁 (ḫrb) — to become dry
  • Uyghur: قۇرۇماق (qurumaq) — to become dry
  • Finnish: kuivattaa — to cause to become dry
  • German: austrocknen — to cause to become dry
  • German: trockenlegen — to cause to become dry
  • Polish: wysuszać — to cause to become dry
  • Polish: wysuszyć — to cause to become dry
  • Polish: wyczerpywać — to cause to become dry
  • Polish: wyczerpać — to cause to become dry
  • Romanian: usca — to cause to become dry
  • Turkish: kurutmak — to cause to become dry
  • Turkish: kurulamak — to cause to become dry
  • Uyghur: قۇرۇتماق (qurutmaq) — to cause to become dry