Hail Mary

noun

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

Examples of Hail Mary in a Sentence

He threw up a Hail Mary at the end of the first half.

Recent Examples on the Web

The floor of the Hail Mary is a collection of squares and grids, and each of those squares could be lifted, revealing a trap door underneath, so there could be room for us puppeteers. —Emma Forgione, Vulture, 31 Mar. 2026

Crime 101 author Don Winslow has hit out at Project Hail Mary novellist Andy Weir over his comments about modern Star Trek shows. —Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 30 Mar. 2026

Gosling’s top-grossing film of all time, of course, is Barbie, but Hail Mary is his biggest domestic opening featuring the actor in a leading role, not adjusted for inflation. —Megan Armstrong, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Mar. 2026

Hail Mary is also performing ahead of expectations overseas, where sci-fi is a notoriously tough genre to sell in certain European countries, as well as key regions in Latin America and Asia. —Pamela McClintock, HollywoodReporter, 28 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

translation of Medieval Latin Ave, Maria, from the opening words

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for Hail Mary

• askari
• astbury
• azeri
• banbury
• barberry
• blackberry
• blueberry
• canary
• cranberry
• dentary
• dewberry
• dogberry

Kids Definition

Hail Mary

noun

-ˈme(ə)r-ē, 

-ˈma(ə)r-ē, 

-ˈmā-rē

: a Roman Catholic prayer to the Virgin Mary