How to Use wry in a Sentence

wry

adjective
  • His books are noted for their wry humor.
  • Early episodes strike a wry tone.
    — Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 23 Sep. 2025
  • Kotsay paused with a wry look on his face.
    — Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 14 Sep. 2025
  • The act earned a brief pose and a wry smile from the Spurs star.
    — Devon Henderson, New York Times, 4 June 2026
  • O’Nan’s writing is wise and wry.
    — Chris Hewitt, Boston Herald, 27 Nov. 2025
  • That scene was a chance to make that case in Jon’s wry manner.
    — Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 30 Aug. 2025
  • As he was placed under arrest, a wry grin spread across his face.
    — Longreads, 2 June 2022
  • But Chiefs head coach Andy Reid had a more wry take.
    — Jeff Fedotin, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
  • Miller knelt down in the middle of it all with a wry look of contentment.
    — Andrew Carter, Chicago Tribune, 24 May 2026
  • And yet, the wry grimaces that followed said the quiet part out loud.
    — Megan Feringa, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2026
  • How about a wry, cigar-chomping Satan?
    — Keith Phipps, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025
  • There is awe, and sadness, and regret, and wry humor.
    — Literary Hub, 31 Mar. 2026
  • His music has both a wry element of wit and world melancholy to it.
    — San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Aug. 2022
  • The wry smile on Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s face said it all.
    — Beren Cross, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2026
  • The building manager seemed to sense my poor outing and gave me a wry smile.
    — Jeremy Miller, Harper's Magazine, 26 Oct. 2021
  • Leclerc responded only with a wry smile.
    — Brad Spurgeon, Robb Report, 9 Mar. 2026
  • Her tone was wry, but her voice hung there just for a moment before finding its footing.
    — Adam Erace, Travel + Leisure, 6 Feb. 2026
  • But sink into this wry, poignant story and all is forgiven.
    — Literary Hub, 8 Jan. 2026
  • The prose is not quite Steinbeck’s standards, but it is filled with wry humor.
    — Brian Smale, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Apr. 2021
  • This is distinct from writing that is humorous, the stuff that will give you a wry smile at best.
    — John Warner, Chicago Tribune, 11 Apr. 2026
  • In the dance studio, Pierce-Sands had a watchful eye, a wry smile and a loud voice.
    — Jared Kaufman, Twin Cities, 5 Dec. 2025
  • Jenkin’s work is idiosyncratic, wry, and lush, shot on gorgeous 16mm.
    — Vulture Staff, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2025
  • Their wry scenes together, which have the warmth of a rekindled flame, are the movie’s raison d’être.
    — Hilton Als, New Yorker, 16 Jan. 2026
  • Chocolate brings it home with a punch line—a wry observation to end the story with a laugh.
    — Joseph Trinidad, Longreads, 16 June 2026
  • Fey is a delight in this sequence, her wry pompousness accented with a wink.
    — Lauren Puckett-Pope, ELLE, 28 June 2022
  • This is the kind of wry, unexpected gallows humor that this show does so well.
    — Jen Chaney, Vulture, 30 Apr. 2026
  • Watts was wry and rock-steady in both his playing and his personality.
    — Jem Aswad, Variety, 24 Aug. 2021
  • Yet, gentleness, empathy, and even wry humor break through in many of the songs here.
    — David Harris, SPIN, 2 Mar. 2026
  • But while Bechdel is adept at wry humor, lightness isn’t exactly her thing.
    — Heller McAlpin, The Christian Science Monitor, 10 May 2021
  • One needed to simply see the wry smile on Palczewski’s face to know this was a strange vote.
    — Luca Evans, Denver Post, 14 Jan. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wry.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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