Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1500-1600
Origin: wry 'to twist' (14-19 centuries), from Old English wrigian 'to turn'

wry

 adjective
     
wry [only before noun]
a wry expression or wry humour shows that you know a situation is bad, but you also think it is slightly amusing:
'Was it as bad as you expected?' Travis gave a wry smile.
—wryly adverb
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
 
Dictionary pictures of the day
Do you know what each of these is called?
What is the word for picture 1? What is the word for picture 2? What is the word for picture 3? What is the word for picture 4?
Click on any of the pictures above to find out what it is called.

Explore our topic dictionary

ADVERTISING AND MARKETINGANIMALSBANKING
BIOLOGYBUSINESS BASICSCOMPUTERS
CLOTHESDAILY LIFEEDUCATION
FINANCEFOODGRAMMAR
HAIR AND BEAUTYHUMANLAW
MUSICNATURESPORT
STOCKS AND SHARESTECHNOLOGYTRADE