dry run
noun
a rehearsal or practice exercise.
Military.
practice in firing arms without using live ammunition.
Origin of dry run
An Americanism dating back to 1940–45
OTHER WORDS FROM dry run
dry-run, adjectiveWords nearby dry run
dry puddling,
dry rale,
dry riser,
dry rot,
dry rot fungus,
dry run,
dry sink,
dry slope,
dry socket,
dry spell,
dry steam
Example sentences from the Web for dry run
Could you give us an estimate of how much time they used in this dry-run practice, each?
Warren Commission (3 of 26): Hearings Vol. III (of 15) |The President's Commission on the Assassination of President KennedyWould practice without actually firing the weapon be helpful—that is, a dry-run practice?
Warren Commission (3 of 26): Hearings Vol. III (of 15) |The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
British Dictionary definitions for dry run
dry run
noun
military
practice in weapon firing, a drill, or a manoeuvre without using live ammunition
informal
a trial or practice, esp in simulated conditions; rehearsal
Idioms and Phrases with dry run
dry run
A trial exercise or rehearsal, as in Regard this as a dry run for tonight's ceremony. This term, using dry in the sense of “unproductive,” was at first employed mainly in the military for simulated bombings in which no bombs were dropped. [c. 1940]