rally

1 of 3

verb (1)

ral·​ly ˈra-lē How to pronounce rally (audio)
rallied; rallying

transitive verb

1
a
: to muster for a common purpose
b
: to recall to order
2
a
: to arouse for action
b
: to rouse from depression or weakness

intransitive verb

1
: to come together again to renew an effort
2
: to join in a common cause
3
: recover, rebound
rallied briefly from his illness
4
: to engage in a rally

rally

2 of 3

noun

plural rallies
1
a
: a mustering of scattered forces to renew an effort
b
: a summoning up of strength or courage after weakness or dejection
c
: a recovery of price after a decline
d
: a renewed offensive
2
: a mass meeting intended to arouse group enthusiasm
3
: a series of shots interchanged between players (as in tennis) before a point is won
4
or less commonly rallye [French rallye, from English rally entry 1] : an automobile competition using public roads and ordinary traffic rules with the object of maintaining a specified average speed between checkpoints over a route unknown to the participants until the start of the event

rally

3 of 3

verb (2)

rallied; rallying

transitive verb

: to attack with raillery : banter

Examples of rally in a Sentence

Noun Supporters held a rally for the candidate. Protesters staged an antiwar rally. Stock prices are up after the dollar's rally yesterday.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Pro-Palestinian protesters rallied on Pennsylvania Avenue Thursday night, seeking to block Biden's motorcade on the way to the Capitol. Joey Garrison, USA TODAY, 8 Mar. 2024 Under Karina’s apology post on Wednesday, the comment section was flooded with fans rallying in support. Jessie Yeung, CNN, 7 Mar. 2024 But her fellow Swifties quickly rallied together to help. Erin Clack, Peoplemag, 6 Mar. 2024 In 1974, concerned citizens rallied and organized a group that was committed to preserving its architectural and historical significance. Steven Satterfield, Southern Living, 6 Mar. 2024 At the time, Biden sought to rally a prime-time, national audience around his administration’s push to require more price transparency, especially on airlines, which can hide the full costs of a ticket until travelers reach the checkout page. Tony Romm, Washington Post, 5 Mar. 2024 Killers of the Flower Moon is filled with rich work from Native and non-Native actors alike, all of whom are rallying to bring Scorsese’s vision of an American tragedy to life. David Fear, Rolling Stone, 4 Mar. 2024 But Garvey’s mid-October entrance ultimately scrambled the field, giving California’s ever-shrinking but still far from insignificant Republican base a candidate to rally behind. Julia Wick, Los Angeles Times, 4 Mar. 2024 Sierra Canyon 7, Calabasas 3: The Trailblazers rallied after being held scoreless for five innings by Lee Atkinson. Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2024
Noun
In separate incidents over the last year, windows were smashed at the Indian Consulate in San Francisco during a pro-Khalistan rally and pro-Khalistan graffiti was scrawled on two Bay Area Hindu temples. Jaweed Kaleem, Los Angeles Times, 8 Mar. 2024 Nvidia insiders made millions on the AI chipmaker’s huge stock rally by dumping shares earlier this week. Laura Bratton, Quartz, 8 Mar. 2024 Baker declined to discuss details of or comment on the Chiefs rally shooting during a Wednesday interview with The Star, as the case is ongoing. Bill Lukitsch, Kansas City Star, 8 Mar. 2024 Charlotte needed nearly every one of Milicic’s points to thwart the Owls’ late-game rally. Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 7 Mar. 2024 On Sunday, the chants continued, as thousands of crew workers gathered for a Los Angeles rally ahead of Monday’s bargaining talks with Hollywood studios and streamers, the Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers. Kalia Richardson, Rolling Stone, 7 Mar. 2024 Trump has also called out high mortgage costs at his rallies, and quickly resumed his old playbook of lambasting the Fed from his time in office. Rachel Siegel, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024 Parker introduced Haley at a packed rally Monday at Tannehill’s Tavern in the Stockyards. Harrison Mantas, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Mar. 2024 Elsewhere, stocks have soared higher this year, though the rally stalled somewhat this week. Krystal Hur, CNN, 5 Mar. 2024
Verb
Trump has used his indictment to rally Republicans, with even some of his potential Republican opponents accusing law enforcement of being weaponized against Trump. Joey Garrison, USA TODAY, 5 Apr. 2023 On his own diplomatic trip, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is in neighboring Poland on Wednesday, making his first wartime visit to a close ally that has helped rally political and military support for Kyiv. Missy Ryan, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2023 Last year’s playoff game was tied after each quarter before Brendan Millon scored in the final second of the fourth quarter to rally the Eagles, who went on to beat St. Mary’s in the title game. Glenn Graham, Baltimore Sun, 5 Apr. 2023 Fanning anti-German sentiment offers a way for Law and Justice to deflect blame for the blocked and much-needed E.U. relief funds and to rally some of its hard-right voters in anticipation of this fall’s election, which is expected to be close. Elisabeth Zerofsky, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2023 One of my key priorities is to advance the Sharm El Sheikh Adaptation Agenda, the first comprehensive global plan to rally both states and non-state actors behind enhancing the resilience among our planet’s four billion people, and ensuring this is done in a just and inclusive way. Faustine Ngila, Quartz, 3 Apr. 2023 Calzada, 57, and Foote, 63, formed FReadom Fighters in November 2021 to rally an army of book lovers on social media and in their communities. Tracey Harrington McCoy, Peoplemag, 3 Apr. 2023 And, Rachel, so far, at least, top Republicans seem to be rallying behind Trump. ABC News, 2 Apr. 2023 Transylvania had to rally to end up on the right side of the scoreboard against the Captains, who also entered the title showdown with an undefeated record (31-0). Ryan Black, The Courier-Journal, 1 Apr. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'rally.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

French rallier, from Old French ralier, from re- + alier to unite — more at ally

Verb (2)

French railler to mock, rally — more at rail

First Known Use

Verb (1)

1599, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun

1646, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (2)

1668, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of rally was in 1599

Dictionary Entries Near rally

Cite this Entry

“Rally.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rally. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

rally

1 of 3 verb
ral·​ly ˈral-ē How to pronounce rally (audio)
rallied; rallying
1
a
: to bring or come together for a common purpose
rallied to the cause
b
: to bring back to order
rallied the retreating troops
2
: to rouse from low spirits or weakness
the patient rallied
3
: to make a comeback
the team rallied in the fourth quarter
stock prices rallied at the close of trading

rally

2 of 3 noun
plural rallies
1
: the action of rallying
2
: a big meeting intended to arouse enthusiasm
3
: a series of shots hit back and forth between players (as in tennis) before a point is won

rally

3 of 3 verb
rallied; rallying
: to tease in a good-natured way
Etymology

Verb

from French rallier "to call or come together for a common purpose," from early French ralier (same meaning), from re- "again, back" and alier "to unite"

Verb

from French railler "to mock, tease," from early French railler (same meaning) — related to rail entry 4

More from Merriam-Webster on rally

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