dry humour

[tali122]

why the phrase "a dry sense of humour" to describe a witty person , someone said it to me when i was unfamiliar with the phrase and i snapped "yeah and you aint a barrel of laughs either!" , it just sounds negative to me

[Quizmonster]

One meaning of 'dry' for the past eight centuries has been 'emotionless/impassive'. As a result, since the 16th century, it has been applied to the sort of humour which gives no appearance of actually being humorous. That is, the person delivering the joke does so with a straight face, as it were.

[andy-hughes]

If you watch Paul Merton on Have I Got News For You - you will see a 'dry' sense of humour in action.

[BBWCHATT]

When my Mother used it to describe my "sense of humor" - it was not a compliment!