Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

dry

2 verb
     
dry2 S2 W3 past tense and past participle dried, present participle drying, third person singular dries [intransitive and transitive]
1 to make something dry, or to become dry:
Mrs Brown hung the washing on the line to dry.
He was drying his hair with a towel.
Mary dried her hands.
Leave the first coat of paint to dry before adding another.
She stood up and dried her eyes (=wiped away her tears).
dry yourself
He quickly dried himself on the thin towel.
2 also dry up British English to rub plates, dishes etc dry with a cloth after they have been washed:
You wash and I'll dry.
Shall I dry up these glasses?

dry off

phrasal verb
to become dry or to make something dry, especially on the surface:
We swam in the sea, then stretched out on the sand to dry off.
dry something ↔ off
He dried the camera off, hoping it would still work.

dry out

phrasal verb
1 to become completely dry or to make something completely dry, especially after it has been very wet:
In summer, water the plants regularly and never let the soil dry out.
dry something ↔ out
The kitchen was flooded and it took ages to dry it out.
2

dry (somebody) out

MHDFD to stop drinking alcohol after you have become an alcoholic, or to make someone do this:
He's been drying out at a private clinic.
The hospital dried Michael out and sent him home.

dry up

phrasal verb
1

come to an end

if a supply of something dries up, it comes to an end and no more is available:
Foreign investment may dry up.
The work soon dried up.
2

river/lake etc

DN if something such as a river dries up, the water in it disappears:
Across central and west Texas, waterholes and wells have dried up.
dry something ↔ up
Taking too much water for household use is drying up the river.
3

stop talking

if someone dries up, they stop talking:
'It was -' She dried up again.
Everyone became embarrassed and conversation dried up.
4

plates/dishes etc

British EnglishDF to rub plates, dishes etc dry with a cloth after they have been washed
dry something ↔ up
I'll just dry up these mugs and we can have a coffee.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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