Hail Mary


noun
  1. Also called Hail Mary pass, Hail Mary play . a long forward pass in football, especially as a last-ditch attempt at the end of a game, where completion is considered unlikely.

Origin of Hail Mary

1
1300–50; Middle English, translation of Medieval Latin Ave Maria

Words Nearby Hail Mary

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How to use Hail Mary in a sentence

  • The exhortation was usually followed by a loud saying of a Paternoster and a "Hail Mary" by all present.

    Tyrol and its People | Clive Holland
  • After the prayer of praise in the "Hail Mary" there follows the prayer of supplication which the Church has added.

  • Certain critics of the Rosary cannot understand why the Hail Mary is so frequently repeated.

  • The "Hail Mary" proved a bit difficult for Hannah, and she finally abandoned it.

    The Little Mixer | Lillian Nicholson Shearon
  • I have received a light that thou art to be the model for the 'Hail Mary!'

    Agnes of Sorrento | Harriet Beecher Stowe

British Dictionary definitions for Hail Mary

Hail Mary

noun
  1. Also called: Ave Maria RC Church a prayer to the Virgin Mary, based on the salutations of the angel Gabriel (Luke 1:28) and Elizabeth (Luke 1:42) to her

  2. American football slang a very long high pass into the end zone, made in the final seconds of a half or of a game

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012