Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Funny in an understated, sarcastic, or ironic way.
- adjective Temporarily twisted in an expression of distaste or displeasure.
- adjective Archaic Abnormally twisted or bent to one side; crooked.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To turn; bend; wind; twist or twine about, with or without change of place.
- To swerve or go obliquely; go awry or astray; deviate from the right course, physically or morally.
- To turn; twist aside.
- To give a twist to; make wry; writhe; wring.
- Figuratively, to pervert; alter.
- To cover; clothe; cover up; cloak; hide.
- Abnormally bent or turned to one side; in a state of contortion; twisted; distorted; askew.
- Crooked; bent; not straight.
- Devious in course or purpose; divaricating; aberrant; misdirected.
- noun A twisting about, or out of shape or course; distortion; a distorting effect.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- transitive verb To twist; to distort; to writhe; to wrest; to vex.
- transitive verb obsolete To cover.
- intransitive verb To twist; to writhe; to bend or wind.
- intransitive verb To deviate from the right way; to go away or astray; to turn side; to swerve.
- adjective Turned to one side; twisted; distorted.
- adjective Hence, deviating from the right direction; misdirected; out of place.
- adjective Wrested; perverted.
- adjective a distortion of the countenance indicating impatience, disgust, or discomfort; a grimace.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb transitive, obsolete To
cover ;clothe ;cover up ;cloak ;hide . - verb obsolete, intransitive To
turn (away); toswerve ordeviate . - verb obsolete, transitive To
divert ; to cause to turn away. - verb transitive To
twist orcontort (the body, face etc.). - adjective Turned away,
contorted (of the face or body). - adjective
Dryly humorous;sardonic orironic . - adjective
Twisted ,bent ,crooked .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective humorously sarcastic or mocking
- adjective bent to one side
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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In the meantime— He smiled again, the expression wry this time.
Proud Helios Melissa Scott 2000
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-- The term wry-neck or torticollis is applied to a condition in which the head assumes an abnormal attitude, which is usually one of combined lateral flexion and rotation.
Manual of Surgery Volume Second: Extremities—Head—Neck. Sixth Edition. Alexander Miles 1893
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"No, it did not," G'dath said, his expression wry.
A Flag Full of Stars Brad Ferguson 2000
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That allusive, indirect style Westlake assigns to himself gives him plenty of room and time to wander away from his plot and work in wry but dead-on descriptions of people and how they live, the work they do, the things they surround themselves with, the places they go, their eccentricities and vanities and various insanities.
Drowned Hopes 2009
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It has all the great Howard Hawks things: every dame a dish, every night foggy and filled with mystery; but the real thing that keeps me watching, that thrills me to discover another nuance every time I see it, is the joyful tongue in wry cheek that Bogey and Bacall play in every scene together.
The Next to Last Day of May greygirlbeast 2010
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With so many differences that separate and divide us, I find it a treat to connect with smart, passionate, talented bloggers who offer their experiences in wry or poignant, frank or even silly on-line content in their blog.
Bloggers = Faith Healers? « California Life: Better Than Happy Hour 2008
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Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine turn in wry, effective performances as Lucius Fox and Alfred the Butler, respectively.
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Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine turn in wry, effective performances as Lucius Fox and Alfred the Butler, respectively.
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Agency, The Sunday Philosophy Club abounds in wry humor and sharp observations of human nature.
The Sunday Philosophy Club by Alexander McCall Smith: Questions 2004
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The edition more than once refers, in wry self-defence, to the description of the character in 1984 who 'was engaged in producing garbled versions - definitive texts, they were called'.
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