battle cry

noun

plural battle cries

1

: a shouted word, phrase, or sound used by a body of fighters before or in battle : war cry

… the Texans later defeated the Mexican army …, securing Texas' independence from Mexico. "Remember the Alamo" was their battle cry.

—US Official News

2

: a slogan, catchphrase, or motto that is used especially to rally people to a cause or to rouse people to action : rallying cry

… the Senator … has selected the battle cry that his listeners will understand and respond to.

—William H. Grimes

She [softball coach Vickie Sax] added: "Our [team] battle cry all year has been 'All In!' …"

—Kevin Stevens

Its purpose is to find asteroids in orbits that cross the orbit of the Earth. "Find them before they find us!" is the Spacewatch battle cry.

—David H. Levy

Every graduate of Lincoln Elementary School for the past thirty-five years could remember standing at that table listening to Mrs. Granger's battle cry: "Look it up! That's why we have the dictionary."

—Andrew Clements

Examples of battle cry in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The additional strength has been appreciated, and it’s almost been a battle cry. —Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 4 Aug. 2025

One of the highlights is the March to Coppergate, a dramatic procession of reenactors complete with shields, battle cries, and historic flair. —David Nikel, Forbes.com, 30 July 2025

During his Best Director acceptance speech, Baker used his time to endear audiences to him even more, making a battle cry of sorts and encouraging everyone to get their butts back into physical seats at the movie theater. —Katherine Singh, refinery29.com, 3 Mar. 2025

The song is a quiet-yet-steely battle cry of support in trying, awry times. —Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 7 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1775, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for battle cry

• abscissae
• alibi
• alkali
• alumni
• amoebae
• amplify
• annuli
• beautify
• brachii
• butterfly
• calculi
• certify