Illustration of rail
1
a
: a bar extending from one post or support to another and serving as a guard or barrier
b
: a structural member or support
2
a
b
: a light structure serving as a guard at the outer edge of a ship's deck
c
: a fence bounding a racetrack
plural rail or rails
: any of numerous wading birds (family Rallidae, the rail family) that are of small or medium size and have short rounded wings, a short tail, and usually very long toes which enable them to run on the soft mud of marshes
railed; railing; rails
: to revile or scold in harsh, insolent, or abusive language
railer
noun
Synonyms
Noun (1)
Verb (2)
Examples of rail in a Sentence
Noun (1)
the stairs are icy, so hold onto the rail
an abandoned stretch of rail that was overgrown with brush
Verb (2)
we could hear the cook in the kitchen railing against his assistant and wondered if we'd ever get our food
Recent Examples on the Web
John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 17 May 2024
Buttons down the left rail move you between modes for Importing, Filters, Transitions, Titles, Stickers, and more.
—PCMAG, 16 May 2024
Over the next two years, researchers will study how potential lunar environmental hazards such as radiation and extreme temperatures may affect their rail system, then construct a small prototype platform containing miniature robots and tracks.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 16 May 2024
Colorado’s Front Range Passenger Rail District board this week is mulling whether to put a measure on the election ballot this year, or in 2026, asking voters to approve a tax hike to raise more funds for intercity rail.
—Bruce Finley, The Denver Post, 16 May 2024
The claim: New high-speed rail bridge cost $11 billion
A May 5 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) shows a picture of a viaduct over the Fresno River.
—Nate Trela, USA TODAY, 14 May 2024
The rail company is putting coach and Acela business class seats on sale across the country when purchased by May 16 for travel from June 1 through Aug. 30, Amtrak shared with Travel + Leisure.
—Alison Fox, Travel + Leisure, 10 May 2024
According to an update shared by the NJ Transit system's account on X, formerly Twitter, the incident also caused delays to the Morris and Essex and Gladstone Branch rail service in both directions.
—Ingrid Vasquez, Peoplemag, 10 May 2024
Travelers made a total of 20.7 million trips by rail across the country on May 1, a new high for any single day on record, state broadcaster China Central Television reported late Sunday, citing government data.
—Bloomberg, Fortune Asia, 7 May 2024
Susan Page, USA TODAY, 7 May 2024
In recent days, Russia has also railed against North Atlantic Treaty Organization military exercises near its frontiers.
—Laura King, Los Angeles Times, 6 May 2024
Kenneth Kirk, 62, a resident of Newton, Iowa, arrived at a fund-raiser for Ms. Miller-Meeks headlined by Speaker Mike Johnson — who had risked his job to push through the aid — primed to rail against the money for Ukraine.
—Robert Jimison, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2024
China has railed against U.S. assistance to Taiwan and immediately condemned the aid as a dangerous provocation.
—Matthew Lee, Fortune, 26 Apr. 2024
In a brief shot, Swift is seen standing next to a silver railing that eagle-eyed fans quickly surmised was in the shape of the TTPD logo.
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 26 Apr. 2024
For years, police and public health officials in Milwaukee have railed against how easily accessible firearms are, even for young people or those who are legally barred from possessing them.
—Journal Sentinel, 24 Apr. 2024
The votes came after Republicans spent much of the day railing against chaos at the U.S. border with Mexico and blaming the Biden administration for it.
—Luke Broadwater, New York Times, 17 Apr. 2024
Its sharpest focus was on a subject Francis has frequently railed against: poverty.
—Stefano Pitrelli, Washington Post, 8 Apr. 2024
Noun
Mystik Dan won the 150th running of the race two weeks ago by a nose and that came after a near perfect trip along the rail.
—John Cherwa, Los Angeles Times, 17 May 2024
Buttons down the left rail move you between modes for Importing, Filters, Transitions, Titles, Stickers, and more.
—PCMAG, 16 May 2024
Over the next two years, researchers will study how potential lunar environmental hazards such as radiation and extreme temperatures may affect their rail system, then construct a small prototype platform containing miniature robots and tracks.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 16 May 2024
Colorado’s Front Range Passenger Rail District board this week is mulling whether to put a measure on the election ballot this year, or in 2026, asking voters to approve a tax hike to raise more funds for intercity rail.
—Bruce Finley, The Denver Post, 16 May 2024
The claim: New high-speed rail bridge cost $11 billion
A May 5 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) shows a picture of a viaduct over the Fresno River.
—Nate Trela, USA TODAY, 14 May 2024
The rail company is putting coach and Acela business class seats on sale across the country when purchased by May 16 for travel from June 1 through Aug. 30, Amtrak shared with Travel + Leisure.
—Alison Fox, Travel + Leisure, 10 May 2024
According to an update shared by the NJ Transit system's account on X, formerly Twitter, the incident also caused delays to the Morris and Essex and Gladstone Branch rail service in both directions.
—Ingrid Vasquez, Peoplemag, 10 May 2024
Travelers made a total of 20.7 million trips by rail across the country on May 1, a new high for any single day on record, state broadcaster China Central Television reported late Sunday, citing government data.
—Bloomberg, Fortune Asia, 7 May 2024
Verb
Trump has railed against the trial, claiming without evidence that the charges were engineered by Biden and accusing Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Braggs of political motives.
—Susan Page, USA TODAY, 7 May 2024
In recent days, Russia has also railed against North Atlantic Treaty Organization military exercises near its frontiers.
—Laura King, Los Angeles Times, 6 May 2024
Kenneth Kirk, 62, a resident of Newton, Iowa, arrived at a fund-raiser for Ms. Miller-Meeks headlined by Speaker Mike Johnson — who had risked his job to push through the aid — primed to rail against the money for Ukraine.
—Robert Jimison, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2024
China has railed against U.S. assistance to Taiwan and immediately condemned the aid as a dangerous provocation.
—Matthew Lee, Fortune, 26 Apr. 2024
In a brief shot, Swift is seen standing next to a silver railing that eagle-eyed fans quickly surmised was in the shape of the TTPD logo.
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 26 Apr. 2024
For years, police and public health officials in Milwaukee have railed against how easily accessible firearms are, even for young people or those who are legally barred from possessing them.
—Journal Sentinel, 24 Apr. 2024
The votes came after Republicans spent much of the day railing against chaos at the U.S. border with Mexico and blaming the Biden administration for it.
—Luke Broadwater, New York Times, 17 Apr. 2024
Its sharpest focus was on a subject Francis has frequently railed against: poverty.
—Stefano Pitrelli, Washington Post, 8 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'rail.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near rail
Cite this Entry
“Rail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rail. Accessed 23 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
rail
1 of 4 noun1
a
: a bar extending from one support to another and serving as a guard or barrier
b
2
a
: a bar of steel forming a track for wheeled vehicles
b
: railroad
rail
2 of 4 verb
: to provide with a railing
rail
3 of 4 noun
plural rails or rail
: any of various small wading birds related to the cranes
rail
4 of 4 verb
: to scold or complain in harsh or bitter language
railer
noun
Etymology
Noun
Middle English raile "bar, rail," from early French raille, reille "bar, ruler," from Latin regula "straightedge, ruler," from regere "to lead straight, govern, rule" — related to regent, regulate, rule
Noun
Middle English raile "rail (the bird)," from early French raalie (same meaning)
Verb
Middle English railen "to scold, be abusive to," from early French railler "to mock," probably derived from Latin ragere "to neigh"
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