rail

1 of 4

noun (1)

ˈrāl 

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

: railing sense 1

b

: a light structure serving as a guard at the outer edge of a ship's deck

c

: a fence bounding a racetrack

3

a

: a bar of rolled steel forming a track for wheeled vehicles

b

: track

c

: railroad

rail

2 of 4

verb (1)

railed; railing; rails

transitive verb

: to provide with a railing : fence

rail

3 of 4

noun (2)

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

Illustration of rail

rail

4 of 4

verb (2)

railed; railing; rails

intransitive verb

: to revile or scold in harsh, insolent, or abusive language

railer noun

Synonyms of rail

Noun (1)

• railing

Verb (2)

• scold
• lecture
• reprimand
• call down
• dress down
• bawl out
• read the riot act (to)
• blame
• chew out

Choose the Right Synonym for rail

scold, upbraid, berate, rail, revile, vituperate mean to reproach angrily and abusively.

scold implies rebuking in irritation or ill temper justly or unjustly.

angrily scolding the children

upbraid implies censuring on definite and usually justifiable grounds.

upbraided her assistants for poor research

berate suggests prolonged and often abusive scolding.

berated continually by an overbearing boss

rail (at or against) stresses an unrestrained berating.

railed loudly at their insolence

revile implies a scurrilous, abusive attack prompted by anger or hatred.

an alleged killer reviled in the press

vituperate suggests a violent reviling.

was vituperated for betraying his friends

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

Noun

The museum could clip the tapestry to a rail, then feed it into the paravent inch by inch; when the whole thing was transferred, the huge zigzag could be folded up—with the tapestry secured between layers of padding—then turned on its side. — John Phipps, New Yorker, 5 Sep. 2026

The Sheriff’s Office has blamed the crowding in part on Iryna’s Law, legislation named for the Ukrainian refugee fatally stabbed on Charlotte’s Blue Line light rail in 2025. — Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 5 Sep. 2026

Verb

The truck overturned near Hirschdale, and its cab was left dangling about 80 feet over the roadway while damaging the freeway railing, according to an incident log. — Nicole Buss, Sacbee.com, 30 Aug. 2026

The curves ahead are posted at a third of my current speed, but the big Brembos scrub off velocity easily, and the Slingshot rails through corner after corner. — William Roberson, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English raile, from Anglo-French raille, reille bar, rule, from Latin regula straightedge, rule — more at rule

Noun (2)

Middle English raile, from Middle French raalle

Verb (2)

Middle English, from Middle French railler to mock, probably from Old French reillier to growl, mutter, from Vulgar Latin *ragulare to bray, from Late Latin ragere to neigh

First Known Use

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (1)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing rail

• altar rail
• chair rail
• clapper rail
• commuter rail
• fife rail
• guard rail
• light-rail
• night rail
• passenger rail
• plate rail
• rail-splitter
• split rail
• third rail
• towel rail
• Virginia rail

Rhymes for rail

• ail
• ale
• bail
• baile
• dail
• fail
• flail
• frail
• gael
• gail
• grail
• hail

Kids Definition

rail

1 of 4 noun

ˈrā(ə)l 

1

a

: a bar extending from one support to another and serving as a guard or barrier

b

: railing sense 1

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"