spry

1 of 2

adjective

ˈsprī 

sprier or spryer ˈsprī(-ə)r  ; spriest or spryest ˈsprī-əst 

: able to move quickly, easily, and lightly : nimble sense 1

—used especially to describe an older person

a spry 75-year-old

… his spry libidinous grandfather …

—Stanley Kauffmann

Matthew is getting up in years, you know—he's sixty—and he isn't so spry as he once was.

—Charles Keller

spryly adverb

… hopping spryly onto a treadmill.

—Heather King

Then there's his trumpet playing, which he still does spryly at the age of 82, with its dusty allure intact.

—Giovanni Russonello

spryness noun

… he still has a boyish spryness although he's in his late forties.

—Adam Mars-Jones

spryness

2 of 2

noun

spry·​ness

plural -es

: the quality or state of being spry

Synonyms of spry

Adjective

• graceful
• agile

Examples of spry in a Sentence

Adjective

an older woman who's still surprisingly spry

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

These giants of their fields will each write a spry, five- to seven-minute-long fanfare as openers for select LACO concerts throughout the season. — Laura Zornosa, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026

Its celebrated Sunday crossword — our oldest game at a spry 84 — first ran a little under a century after the paper’s founding, and just two months after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. — Jonathan Knight, New York Times, 18 Sep. 2026

Not only this, but overseeding will also add young, spry grass which helps the whole lawn better defend itself against diseases and heat stress. — Mary Marlowe Leverette, The Spruce, 29 Aug. 2026

Assistant defensive backs coach Duane Akina, who, despite rapidly approaching 70 years of age, was perhaps the spriest, most energetic and most rambunctious soul on the field. — Latif Love august 7, Kansas City Star, 7 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

origin unknown

First Known Use

Adjective

1746, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for spry

• ai
• aye
• bae
• bi
• buy
• by
• bye
• chai
• chi
• cry
• die
• dry

Kids Definition

spry

adjective

ˈsprī 

sprier or spryer ˈsprī(-ə)r  ; spriest or spryest ˈsprī-əst 

: light and easy in motion : nimble, sprightly

a spry 75-year-old

spryly adverb

spryness noun