• 2-minute read
• 23rd March 2020

Word Choice: Wry vs. Rye

The words wry and rye sound the same, which makes it easy to confuse them in writing. However, if you follow our advice, you should be able to avoid errors when using these terms in your written work.

Wry (Dry, Mocking or Ironic Humour)

As an adjective, ‘wry’ means something is mocking, teasing, ironic or sarcastic:

He was constantly getting into trouble for his wry sense of humour.

The adverbial form of this word, meanwhile, is ‘wryly’:

The girl smiled wryly at the boy’s attempt to impress her.

The word ‘wry’ derives from an Old English word that means ‘twist’ or ‘contort’. You may thus find old-fashioned texts that use it this way, and we still see hint of this old meaning in the idea of a twisted, ironic smile being ‘wry’. However, it is very rare to use it like this in modern writing.

Rye (A Type of Grain)

‘Rye’ is noun. It refers to a type of cereal crop, similar to wheat and barley:

The rye crop this year was abundant.

It is used to make things like flour, bread, whisky and beer, as well as animal feed. You may therefore see this term used in other nouns or noun phrases when something is made with rye (e.g. ryebread or rye whisky).

You may also have come across the word ‘rye’ in the title of The Catcher in the Rye, a famous novel by American author J. D. Salinger. The title references a poem titled ‘Comin’ Thro the Rye’ by the Scottish poet Robert Burns. However, the cereal grain does not feature heavily in the book!

Summary: Wry or Rye?

These words sound the same, but they are very different in meaning:

• Wry is an adjective that refers to dry, mocking or ironic humour.
• Rye is a noun that refers to a cereal grain similar to wheat.

And if you need any more help with word choice or making sure your writing is error free, why not submit a document for proofreading today?