as in rehearsal
a private performance or session in preparation for a public appearance
we had time for just one dry run of the play before opening night
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Recent Examples of dry run
UAGateway’s principal, Kristina Dvorakovskaya, had conducted a dry run in which the staff figured out how to, in an emergency, redistribute 400 phones in about five minutes.
—
Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 5 Sep. 2025
Israel has intermittently launched such long-range airstrikes since July 2024, after a Houthi drone hit Tel Aviv, in combat missions that, especially in retrospect, served as dry runs for the June air war against Iran.
—Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 24 Aug. 2025
In March, the team did a large-scale dry run of the dispersal at an open air testing facility on a naval base in New Jersey.
—ArsTechnica, 11 Aug. 2025
In addition to this tariff dry run giving him a better understanding of the limits of executive trade authority, Ross added that Trump now has the political capital to solidify these policies.
—Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for dry run
Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 5 Sep. 2025
Israel has intermittently launched such long-range airstrikes since July 2024, after a Houthi drone hit Tel Aviv, in combat missions that, especially in retrospect, served as dry runs for the June air war against Iran.
—Paul Iddon, Forbes.com, 24 Aug. 2025
In March, the team did a large-scale dry run of the dispersal at an open air testing facility on a naval base in New Jersey.
—ArsTechnica, 11 Aug. 2025
In addition to this tariff dry run giving him a better understanding of the limits of executive trade authority, Ross added that Trump now has the political capital to solidify these policies.
—Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for dry run
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dry run
Noun
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During rehearsal, Armstrong seemed free of any cellophane wrapping.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
9 Nov. 2025
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Variety caught up with Thayil last weekend during a break from rehearsals for the show.—
Jem Aswad,
Variety,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Jackson, who famously won an acquittal in the murder trial of Karen Read and represented disgraced film mogul Harvey Weinstein, did not explain his decision to withdraw from the case.—
Matt Gutman,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
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Dugan was suspended by the Wisconsin Supreme Court in April, but continued to collect her roughly $175,000 annual salary while awaiting trial.—
Michael Sinkewicz,
FOXNews.com,
7 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dry run.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dry%20run. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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