wry

verb \ ˈrī \

Updated on: 18 Apr 2018

Definition of wry

wried; wrying

intransitive verb

: twist, writhe

transitive verb

: to pull out of or as if out of proper shape : make awry

Origin and Etymology of wry

Middle English wrien, from Old English wrigian to turn; akin to Middle High German rigel kerchief wound around the head, Greek rhiknos shriveled, Avestan urvisyeiti he turns

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

See Words from the same year

wry

adjective

Definition of wry

wryer play \ˈrī(-ə)r\; wryest play \ˈrī-əst\

1 : bent, twisted, or turned usually abnormally to one side

a wry nose

2 : made by a deliberate distortion of the facial muscles often to express irony or mockery

a wry smile

3 : wrongheaded 1

4 : cleverly and often ironically or grimly humorous

a wry wit

—

wryly

play \ˈrī-lē\ adverb

—

wryness

noun

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Examples of wry in a Sentence

His books are noted for their wry humor.
When I asked her how she felt after winning the race, she gave me a wry smile and said, “Pretty tired.”

Recent Examples of wry from the Web

There’s Blanchett’s wry right-hand woman, shaking her head with impressed amusement at Debbie’s determination.

— caroline framke, Vox, "The glam new Ocean’s 8 trailer has Sandra Bullock and Cate Blanchett getting down to business," 12 Apr. 2018
One lyric simultaneously submerges a character deep into a pool of feeling while also preserving his wry detachment from it.

— lily janiak, San Francisco Chronicle, "Not much of a ‘Saturday Night’ except for Sondheim devotees," 2 Apr. 2018
The guy looks remarkably like Snoop Dogg: skinny enough for a Vogue advertisement, lean-faced with a wry expression, long braids.

— sarah jones, The New Republic, "The Conservative Columnist Conundrum," 27 Mar. 2018
Maarleveld, who was partially raised in New Zealand, offers up a natural-sounding Australian accent as Mrs. Bobs; most of the novel's humor, wry and sometimes sarcastic, comes through her observant eye.

— rochelle o'gorman, latimes.com, "With days like these, take time to listen and laugh," 24 Mar. 2018
There’s often something wry about his genre film experiments, a kind of James Franco-on-a-soap-opera quality that is supposed to be a higher being earnestly appreciating a lower form—but often instead seems like stunty slumming.

— richard lawson, HWD, "Claire Foy Gives a Star Turn in Harrowing Unsane," 23 Mar. 2018
Breaking the movie into distinct acts, Anderson weaves in an abundance of wry humor, such as Goldblum's character always having some titillating new gossip to share that he's picked up via the dog grapevine.

— brian lowry, CNN, "'Isle of Dogs' scratches quirky itch with animated fantasy," 22 Mar. 2018
The roster also featured its share of offbeat characters, from wry New Englander Mike Flanagan to one of the least likely World Series MVPs in history, catcher Rick Dempsey.

— childs walker, baltimoresun.com, "Remembering, catching up with the 1983 World Series champion Orioles 35 years later," 22 Mar. 2018
Inside and out, the house is full of French effects and decorative stone --– most real, some clever trompe l’oeil, some with a wry wink.

— judy rose, Detroit Free Press, "House Envy: Winding road, French touches give Hartland mansion its charm," 3 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'wry.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.