as in sarcastic
marked by the use of clever and often dark humor
The writer had a wry wit that was something of an acquired taste.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of wry
Through a Zoom screen, King radiates compassion and attunement, and Faber is wry and delightfully discursive; both seem like the mom whose house everybody would hang out at after school.
—
Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 5 Sep. 2023
The elder Slay brother had approached life with a wry, dark sense of humor.
—James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 23 Dec. 2023
His second album for DeMarco’s Mac’s Record Label, Sweet Dreamin’, is a breezy, nine-song, 24-minute delight led by Crick’s charming piano melodies and wry interpersonal narratives.
—Jonathan Cohen, SPIN, 13 Oct. 2023
The setup is familiar, but the film is wry, vivid and moving in unexpected ways — a testament to Jacobs’ singular touch, his gently eccentric blend of comic absurdism and emotional generosity.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Sep. 2023
See all Example Sentences for wry 
Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 5 Sep. 2023
The elder Slay brother had approached life with a wry, dark sense of humor.
—James Rainey, Los Angeles Times, 23 Dec. 2023
His second album for DeMarco’s Mac’s Record Label, Sweet Dreamin’, is a breezy, nine-song, 24-minute delight led by Crick’s charming piano melodies and wry interpersonal narratives.
—Jonathan Cohen, SPIN, 13 Oct. 2023
The setup is familiar, but the film is wry, vivid and moving in unexpected ways — a testament to Jacobs’ singular touch, his gently eccentric blend of comic absurdism and emotional generosity.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Sep. 2023
See all Example Sentences for wry
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wry
Adjective
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Ally and Jay are both sarcastic, too — their best lines are muttered under their breaths — and their repartee becomes more interesting than the bloody theatrics.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2025
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When Filip Hronek took a soft point shot that Darcy Kuemper stopped shortly after, the crowd responded with a sarcastic Bronx cheer.—
Harman Dayal,
The Athletic,
16 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Bundle up, lace up your hiking shoes, and enjoy a brisk hike through Lyonia Preserve.—
Joe Rassel,
Orlando Sentinel,
6 Feb. 2025
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So grab your favorite blanket, curl up and enjoy the brisk beauty of the outdoors.—
Jené Luciani Sena,
Fox News,
1 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Away in a northeasterly direction towards Lake Pontchartrain sits a charmless, gated perimeter, secured by a fence topped with barbed wire.—
Adam Crafton,
The Athletic,
8 Feb. 2025
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This is Auschwitz-Birkenau, a place where the Nazis treated people like animals caged in by electrified barbed wire, where prisoners died slowly by a combination of slave labor, human experimentation, starvation and disease.—
Jesse Kirsch,
NBC News,
2 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Israel's President Isaac Herzog described the release ceremony as cynical and vicious.—
Hussam al-Masri,
USA TODAY,
10 Feb. 2025
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He’s been given every reason to be angry, frustrated, and cynical, toward the specific people coming after him and the world at large.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
10 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Despite the biting cold, show attendees embraced a minimalist approach to beauty, favoring natural, dewy complexions over heavy makeup.—
Stixx Mathews,
Essence,
10 Feb. 2025
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Neshat’s Marjan is a bit slippery, oscillating between kind and strict, biting and supportive, self-deprecating and wistful.—
Christian Lewis,
Variety,
24 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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But the web giant — always keen to serve up what its customers are looking for — has not given up on the high end.—
Evan Clark,
WWD,
16 Feb. 2025
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Hammer seems keen on taking control of his own narrative.—
Scott Roxborough,
The Hollywood Reporter,
14 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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On paper, Bridget can be compellingly hard to pin down, inconstant and ironic, messily self-aware, undeniably human.—
Sophie Gilbert,
The Atlantic,
7 Feb. 2025
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Trump’s decision to negotiate with Maduro, sidestepping Venezuela’s opposition, is equally ironic.—
Andres Oppenheimer,
Miami Herald,
31 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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On dry pavement, its 413 pound-feet of torque kept things interesting when passing traffic on the highway or off the line at a red light.—
Justin Gest,
Newsweek,
11 Feb. 2025
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This Korean serum staple in Soko Glam Founder Charlotte Cho’s skin-care routine stacks several sizes of hyaluronic acid with moisture-locking panthenol and barrier-strengthening ceramides to rescue dry skin from flakiness.—
Devon Abelman,
Allure,
11 Feb. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near wry
Cite this Entry
“Wry.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wry. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.
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