Definition of Hail Mary
plural Hail Marys
1
: a Roman Catholic prayer to the Virgin Mary that consists of salutations and a plea for her intercession
2
or less commonly
Hail Mary pass
: a long forward pass in football thrown into or near the end zone in a last-ditch attempt to score as time runs out
—often used figuratively
- The only potential cure is a stem-cell transplant, when you take somebody else's immune system and put it into yours. But right now that's kind of a Hail Mary pass.
- —Douglas Cote, quoted in Bicycling
