volley

American  

[vol-ee] / ˈvɒl i /

noun

volleys plural

1. the simultaneous discharge of a number of missiles or firearms.

2. the missiles so discharged.

3. a burst or outpouring of many things at once or in quick succession.

   a volley of protests.

4. Tennis.

   1. the flight of the ball before it hits the ground.

   2. the return of the ball before it hits the ground.

5. Soccer. a kick of the ball before it bounces on the ground.

6. Cricket. a ball so bowled that it hits the wicket before it touches the ground.

7. Mining. the explosion of several charges at one time.

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verb (used with object)

volleys, present (3rd person singular) volleyed, past participle, past volleying present participle

1. to discharge in or as in a volley.

2. Tennis. to return (the ball) before it hits the ground.

3. Soccer. to kick (the ball) before it bounces on the ground.

4. Cricket. to bowl (a ball) in such a manner that it is pitched near the top of the wicket.

verb (used without object)

volleys, present (3rd person singular) volleyed, past participle, past volleying present participle

1. to fly or be discharged together, as missiles.

2. to move or proceed with great rapidity, as in a volley.

3. to fire a volley; sound together, as firearms.

4. Tennis, Soccer. to return the ball before it touches the ground.

volley British  

/ ˈvɒlɪ /

noun

1. the simultaneous discharge of several weapons, esp firearms

2. the projectiles or missiles so discharged

3. a burst of oaths, protests, etc, occurring simultaneously or in rapid succession

4. sport a stroke, shot, or kick at a moving ball before it hits the ground Compare half volley

5. cricket the flight of such a ball or the ball itself

6. the simultaneous explosion of several blastings of rock

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verb

1. to discharge (weapons, etc) in or as if in a volley or (of weapons, etc) to be discharged

2. (tr) to utter vehemently or sound loudly and continuously

3. (tr) sport to strike or kick (a moving ball) before it hits the ground

4. (intr) to issue or move rapidly or indiscriminately

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• volleyer
  noun

Inflected Forms

noun

• volleys
  plural

Conjugated Forms

Present

• has volleyed
  perfect 3rd person singular
• have volleyed
  perfect
• have been volleying
  perfect progressive
• has been volleying
  perfect progressive 3rd person singular
• are volleying
  progressive
• am volleying
  progressive 1st person singular
• is volleying
  progressive 3rd person singular
• volleying
  participle
• volleys
  singular 3rd person

Past

• had volleyed
  perfect
• had been volleying
  perfect progressive
• were volleying
  progressive plural
• was volleying
  progressive singular
• volleyed
  participle
• volleyed
  simple

Future

• will volley
  simple
• will have volleyed
  perfect
• will be volleying
  progressive
• will have been volleying
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of volley

1565–75; < Middle French volee flight, noun use of feminine past participle of voler to fly < Latin volāre

Explanation

When an attacking army lets loose a barrage of bullets all at once, it's called a volley. A volley of bullets, arrows, or rocks describes a large number of them being shot or thrown simultaneously. Another meaning of the noun volley involves just one projectile: a returned tennis ball, usually one that hasn't hit the ground before being smacked by a racket. The military meaning of volley has been around since the 1500's, while the sports meaning didn't arise until the late 1800's. The root word is the Latin volare, "to fly."

Example Sentences

The first point of Williams' return was served by Mboko and ended in her partner sending a volley out without the American hitting a shot.

From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026

Cobolli could not serve the fourth set out at 5-4 up and blew his first set point in the tie-break by framing a simple forehand volley, but recovered to force a decider.

From BBC • Jun. 7, 2026

—Asian stocks were mixed on Tuesday as investors mulled developments around peace talks in the Middle East alongside a volley of AI-related announcements.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 2, 2026

It didn’t take very long for investors to react to this latest volley, with all three major U.S. stock indexes extending their declines on Monday.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 23, 2026

Soon after the August massacres, he was hit by a volley of paranoid hallucinations.

From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee

Related Words

• burst
• crossfire
• firing
• gunfire
• salvo