dry up

verb

dried up; drying up; dries up

transitive verb

: to cut off the supply of

intransitive verb

1

: to disappear as if by evaporation, draining, or cutting off of a source of supply

2

: to wither or die through gradual loss of vitality

3

: to stop talking

Synonyms

• belt up [British]
• clam up
• dummy up
• hush
• pipe down
• quiet (down)
• shut up

Examples of dry up in a Sentence

sick of her constant complaining, he angrily told her to dry up

Recent Examples on the Web

The scoring dried up for Toronto from there until Tavares scored an empty-netter to secure a hat trick, but the team dominated the play from its offensive outburst on. —Nick Ashbourne, The Athletic, 16 Dec. 2024

That pipeline supply has largely dried up, and Europe has turned to U.S. LNG exporters to fill the void. —Dan Eberhart, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024

The raise stands out at a time when digital health enthusiasm and corresponding venture funds have dried up significantly. —Erin Brodwin, Axios, 12 Dec. 2024

Whether casually dating or deeply connecting with a sweetheart, may find that your new lover is acting differently, your many options are drying up or that there’s even tension bubbling beneath the seams. —Kyle Thomas, People.com, 8 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense