rallied; rallying
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
1
: to come together again to renew an effort
2
: to join in a common cause
4
: to engage in a rally
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
Synonyms
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
Greg Wehner, Fox News, 16 Nov. 2023
Harris spoke to voters alongside South Carolina Rep. James Clyburn, whose endorsement of Biden in the 2020 Democratic primary is seen as having helped change the course of that race because Biden rallied to win a decisive victory in the state.
—Mike Pappano, ABC News, 13 Nov. 2023
Thousands of people are expected to rally Tuesday in Washington to show solidarity with Israel, express their resolve in combating a rise in antisemitism and demand the release of hostages abducted by Hamas.
—Ellie Silverman, Washington Post, 13 Nov. 2023
All that changed at Vic Player Stadium as the Hornets wasted an 18-point lead before rallying to defeat Helix 45-38 in a double-overtime thriller.
—Don Norcross, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Nov. 2023
Conservatives rally behind a staggered funding plan House Republicans are expected to gather this morning at a closed-door meeting to discuss government funding options.
—Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 7 Nov. 2023
Bonds and stocks rallied, with the yield on U.S. 10-year Treasurys falling to 4.557%, the lowest settle since September.
—Heard Editors, WSJ, 6 Nov. 2023
Frankel, who’s been using her platform to rally for unionizing reality talent and rethinking what she’s described as an exploitative working environment, recently referenced Bensimon in an interview with The Los Angeles Times.
—Mikey O'Connell, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 Nov. 2023
Chase’s Cal teammates gathered around him in the locker room to watch on television as Ethan rallied the Bruins on a late drive against Oregon in 2021 as an injury replacement for Thompson-Robinson.
—Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2023
Tim Meehan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Nov. 2023
To Saree Makdisi, a UCLA English professor, assertions that such rallies amount to violent incitement are absurd.
—Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times, 15 Nov. 2023
The prospect that the Fed may end its rate hike campaign and eventually cut rates ignited a stock market rally Nov. 14.
—Christopher Rugaber, The Christian Science Monitor, 15 Nov. 2023
Tuesday’s soft inflation data capped off an epic rally in U.S. bond prices.
—WSJ, 15 Nov. 2023
Since the fighting began on Oct. 7, pro-Palestinian organizations have held their own rallies in cities across the U.S. and globally.
—Erik Ortiz, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2023
Hundreds of Minnesotans rally in support of Israel in Washington D.C.
—Caitlin O'Kane, CBS News, 14 Nov. 2023
Such hopes lifted all kinds of investments, and more than 95% of the stocks in the S&P 500 climbed in a widespread rally.
—Stan Choe, Fortune, 14 Nov. 2023
And crypto is back to its favorite activity: a wild speculative rally.
—Alexander Osipovich, WSJ, 4 Nov. 2023
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
See More
Verb
The Pope Francis ousted leader of the Diocese of Tyler, Texas, and dozens of his supporters, rallied outside the annual fall business meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops on Wednesday in Maryland.
—Greg Wehner, Fox News, 16 Nov. 2023
Harris spoke to voters alongside South Carolina Rep. James Clyburn, whose endorsement of Biden in the 2020 Democratic primary is seen as having helped change the course of that race because Biden rallied to win a decisive victory in the state.
—Mike Pappano, ABC News, 13 Nov. 2023
Thousands of people are expected to rally Tuesday in Washington to show solidarity with Israel, express their resolve in combating a rise in antisemitism and demand the release of hostages abducted by Hamas.
—Ellie Silverman, Washington Post, 13 Nov. 2023
All that changed at Vic Player Stadium as the Hornets wasted an 18-point lead before rallying to defeat Helix 45-38 in a double-overtime thriller.
—Don Norcross, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Nov. 2023
Conservatives rally behind a staggered funding plan House Republicans are expected to gather this morning at a closed-door meeting to discuss government funding options.
—Elizabeth Robinson, NBC News, 7 Nov. 2023
Bonds and stocks rallied, with the yield on U.S. 10-year Treasurys falling to 4.557%, the lowest settle since September.
—Heard Editors, WSJ, 6 Nov. 2023
Frankel, who’s been using her platform to rally for unionizing reality talent and rethinking what she’s described as an exploitative working environment, recently referenced Bensimon in an interview with The Los Angeles Times.
—Mikey O'Connell, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 Nov. 2023
Chase’s Cal teammates gathered around him in the locker room to watch on television as Ethan rallied the Bruins on a late drive against Oregon in 2021 as an injury replacement for Thompson-Robinson.
—Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2023
Noun
Down 15-14 in the third, Noa had three digs in one rally.
—Tim Meehan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Nov. 2023
To Saree Makdisi, a UCLA English professor, assertions that such rallies amount to violent incitement are absurd.
—Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times, 15 Nov. 2023
The prospect that the Fed may end its rate hike campaign and eventually cut rates ignited a stock market rally Nov. 14.
—Christopher Rugaber, The Christian Science Monitor, 15 Nov. 2023
Tuesday’s soft inflation data capped off an epic rally in U.S. bond prices.
—WSJ, 15 Nov. 2023
Since the fighting began on Oct. 7, pro-Palestinian organizations have held their own rallies in cities across the U.S. and globally.
—Erik Ortiz, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2023
Hundreds of Minnesotans rally in support of Israel in Washington D.C.
—Caitlin O'Kane, CBS News, 14 Nov. 2023
Such hopes lifted all kinds of investments, and more than 95% of the stocks in the S&P 500 climbed in a widespread rally.
—Stan Choe, Fortune, 14 Nov. 2023
And crypto is back to its favorite activity: a wild speculative rally.
—Alexander Osipovich, WSJ, 4 Nov. 2023
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
See More
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
Phrases Containing rally
Articles Related to rally
Dictionary Entries Near rally
Cite this Entry
“Rally.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rally. Accessed 28 Nov. 2023.
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Kids Definition
rally
1 of 3 verb
ral·ly
ˈral-ē 
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
Nglish: Translation of rally for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of rally for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about rally
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