Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

See What's Trending Now See More Trending Words

dry up

verb

Definition of dry up

  1. transitive verb

  2. :  to cut off the supply of

  3. intransitive verb

  4. 1 :  to disappear as if by evaporation, draining, or cutting off of a source of supply

  5. 2 :  to wither or die through gradual loss of vitality

  6. 3 :  to stop talking

Read the Latest from M-W

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066
time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first
Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?
image1458426927
Good Words for Strong Flavors
alt-5993066a3afad
What's the Plural of 'Maitre d''?

Examples of dry up in a Sentence

  1. sick of her constant complaining, he angrily told her to dry up

First Known Use of dry up

14th century

dry up Synonyms

Synonyms
belt up [British], clam up, shut up, dummy up, hush, pipe down, quiet (down)
Antonyms
speak, talk
Related Words
calm (down), cool (down), settle (down); haw, hem
Near Antonyms
pipe up, sound off, speak out, speak up, spout (off), talk up

Learn More about dry up

  1. See words that rhyme with dry up Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for dry up Britannica English: Translation of dry up for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up dry up? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

perfunctory

play

done merely as a duty

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. repugnant Trump clarifies his position on racism

  2. white nationalist, white supremacist Trending in 2017

  3. bereft "Lacking something needed, wanted, or expected"

  4. impanel "To choose people to serve on a jury"

  5. cosmopolitan "Worldly"

SEE ALL

BROWSE DICTIONARY

dry up

Test Your Vocabulary

Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

  • time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first
  • Which came first?
Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

TAKE THE QUIZ
Word Winder's CrossWinder

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

image1458426927
Food Words for Strong Flavors

A tasting menu of vivid flavor descriptions

alt-5993066a3afad
What's the Plural of 'Maitre d''?

Use this word to confuse a French speaker.

alt-598dca6eb95f8
Running After the History of 'Lackey'

Are lackeys lacking something?

alt-5991b04e3d7ac
The Difference Between 'Patriotism' and 'Nationalism'

They're often not synonyms

Ask the Editors

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

payday
How Often Is 'Biweekly'?

Don't get us started on 'bimonthly'

video-irregardless-grammar-peeve-blend-of-the-synonyms-irrespective-and-regardless
Irregardless

It is in fact a real word (but that doesn't mean you should use it).

video-moose-goose-weird-plurals
Weird Plurals

One goose, two geese. One moose, two... moose. What's up with that?

Word Games

time-traveler-quiz-which-word-came-first
Time Traveler Quiz: Which Word Came First?

Which word entered the English language first?

Take the quiz
name-more-food
Name More Food!

Test your knowledge of food vocabulary!

Take the quiz
Name That Thing
Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

Take the quiz
Word Winder's CrossWinder
Word Winder's CrossWinder

A game of winding words.

Play the game
Examples: dry up in a Sentence