Hail Mary

noun

Ave Maria.
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

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

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for hail mary

ave

Examples from the Web for hail mary

Contemporary Examples of hail mary

As an election tactic, it was a Hail-Mary move: a half-hour address by an aging actor of no political standing or constituency.
Remembering Reagan’s Defining Speech
Stuart Stevens
October 27, 2014

British Dictionary definitions for hail mary

Hail Mary

noun

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
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