Meaning

adjective free from liquid or moisture; lacking natural or normal moisture or depleted of water; or no longer wet

verb remove the moisture from and make dry

noun a reformer who opposes the use of intoxicating beverages

originAdjective and noun from Middle English drye, dryge, drüȝe, from Old English drȳġe (“dry; parched, withered”), from Proto-West Germanic *drūgī, *draugī, from Proto-Germanic *drūgiz, *draugiz (“dry, hard”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰerǵʰ- (“to strengthen; become hard”), from *dʰer- (“to hold, support”). The verb derives from Middle English drien, from Old English drȳġan (“to dry”), from…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0