rally

¹ American  

[ral-ee] / ˈræl i /

verb (used with object)

rallied, rallying

1. to bring into order again; gather and organize or inspire anew.

   The general rallied his scattered army.

   Synonyms:

   muster

2. to draw or call (persons) together for a common action or effort.

   He rallied his friends to help him.

   Synonyms:

   unite, join, group, assemble

3. to concentrate or revive, as one's strength, spirits, etc..

   They rallied their energies for the counterattack.

   Synonyms:

   reanimate

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verb (used without object)

rallied, rallying

1. to come together for common action or effort.

   The disunited party rallied in time for the election campaign.

   Synonyms:

   cooperate, collaborate, ally

2. to come together or into order again.

   The captain ordered his small force to rally at the next stream.

   Synonyms:

   revive, recuperate, recover, rebound, improve, reorganize, re-form, regroup

3. to come to the assistance of a person, party, or cause (often followed by to oraround ).

   to rally around a political candidate.

4. to recover partially from illness.

   He spent a bad night but began to rally by morning.

5. to find renewed strength or vigor.

   The runner seemed to be rallying for a final sprint.

6. Finance.

   1. (of securities) to rise sharply in price after a drop.

   2. (of the persons forming a stock market) to begin to trade with increased activity after a slow period.

7. (in tennis, badminton, etc.) to engage in a rally.

8. to participate in a long-distance automobile race.

9. Baseball. (of a team) to score one or more runs in one inning.

noun

• rallies
  plural

1. a recovery from dispersion or disorder, as of troops.

2. a renewal or recovery of strength, activity, etc.

3. a partial recovery of strength during illness.

4. a drawing or coming together of persons, as for common action, as in a mass meeting.

   A political rally that brought together hundreds of the faithful.

5. a get-together of hobbyists or other like-minded enthusiasts, primarily to meet and socialize.

6. Finance. a sharp rise in price or active trading after a declining market.

7. (in tennis, badminton, etc.)

   1. an exchange of strokes between players before a point is scored.

   2. the hitting of the ball back and forth prior to the start of a match.

8. Boxing. an exchange of blows.

9. Baseball. the scoring of one or more runs in one inning.

10. British Theater. a quickening of pace for heightening the dramatic effect in a scene or act.

11. Shipbuilding. a series of blows with battering rams, made in order to drive wedges under a hull to raise it prior to launching.

12. Also rallye a long-distance automobile race, especially for sports cars, held over public roads unfamiliar to the drivers, with numerous checkpoints along the route.

rally ² American  

[ral-ee] / ˈræl i /

verb (used with object)

rallied, rallying

1. Rare. to ridicule in a good-natured way; banter.

   Synonyms:

   twit, tease, chaff

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rally ¹ British  

/ ˈrælɪ /

verb

1. to bring (a group, unit, etc) into order, as after dispersal, or (of such a group) to reform and come to order

   the troops rallied for a final assault

2. to organize (supporters, etc) for a common cause or (of such people) to come together for a purpose

3. to summon up (one's strength, spirits, etc) or (of a person's health, strength, or spirits) to revive or recover

4. (intr) stock exchange to increase sharply after a decline

   steels rallied after a bad day

5. (intr) tennis squash badminton to engage in a rally

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noun

1. a large gathering of people for a common purpose, esp for some political cause

   the Nuremberg Rallies

2. a marked recovery of strength or spirits, as during illness

3. a return to order after dispersal or rout, as of troops, etc

4. stock exchange a sharp increase in price or trading activity after a decline

5. tennis squash badminton an exchange of several shots before one player wins the point

6. a type of motoring competition over public and closed roads

rally ² British  

/ ˈrælɪ /

verb

1. to mock or ridicule (someone) in a good-natured way; chaff; tease

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• rallier
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• rallies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of rally¹

First recorded in 1585–95; from French verb rallier, Old French, equivalent to r(e)- re- + allier “to join”; see ally

Origin of rally²

First recorded in 1660–70; from French railler “to rail ² ”

Explanation

Use the verb rally to describe that last push to finish a difficult something. When you hit that last mile in the race and are so tired you want to quit, that's when you rally, finding the strength to pick up the pace. The verb rally is often used to describe a physical effort that has been renewed, but it can describe anything that involves bouncing back from a setback. For example, if something makes you feel disappointed, you rally to get your positive attitude back. Rally can also describe bringing people together, often to support a cause. The event itself is also called a rally, like pep rally in which students boost the confidence of their team as it heads into the championship game.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

rally rallies rallied rallying

“One day she’s yes, the other day she’s no,” Hutt told a crowd at a pro-Bass rally last month.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026

Opposition leaders and journalists accused police of heavy-handed tactics during weekend demonstrations, as authorities locked down New Delhi on Monday ahead of a fresh rally against the election chief.

From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026

With a furious fourth-quarter rally, Manning had led Texas to a 20-point comeback win over Ohio State to launch the Longhorns to the No. 1 spot in the Top 25.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 11, 2026

That makes the risk particularly relevant to the AI-driven rally, which rests on expectations of exceptional future earnings growth.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 11, 2026

The parade started in a few hours, and the rally was scheduled to begin at three.

From "Hope Springs" by Jaime Berry

I’d expected a similar spectacle at the theme park, or at least the charismatic witness of Bakker and his wife, Tammy Faye, whom I’d seen on television at political rallies and telethons.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

The findings are being released as the industry rallies for a new federal film and TV tax incentive bill.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

At 3 p.m. on a recent Saturday afternoon, in a conference room inside Fellowship Chapel in Detroit, Abdul El-Sayed looked different from the Senate candidate I had been watching at rallies around Michigan.

From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2026

Later, as von der Leyen met behind closed doors with students at the University of Pristina, thousands of protesters also gathered in the city centre as part of ongoing rallies against the court.

From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026

The town’s quiet, conservative southern character didn’t go in for rallies and bullhorns.

From "Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference" by Warren St. John

This dynamic explains why reinsurance stocks have sometimes rallied after significant loss events.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

Quarterback Lincoln Jahn rallied visiting Inglewood from a 10-point, fourth-quarter deficit to hand Palos Verdes its first defeat, 26-23, on Friday in a likely Bay League title decider.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026

Intel has rallied more than 200%, with other chip makers seeing similar gains, due to the demand for tech hardware to build out AI ambitions for companies.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026

Thousands of students and faculty members rallied Monday at Cornell to demand justice for the accuser, displaying signs reading "Hold them accountable" and "Protect survivors."

From Barron's ● Oct. 6, 2026

The rebels, who were barely maintaining a foothold in several districts, have rallied.

From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins

In the city of Mardan, an AFP journalist saw a truck that had acted as a rallying point during the long march protests stripped of its images of Khan.

From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026

Its fiduciaries told participants that these assets should “provide greater downside protection in faltering markets, with the tradeoff being slight underperformance in rallying ones.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

He has yet to officially declare a run for the presidency, but is already on the road rallying support.

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

After rallying almost seven-fold this year, Citi is now advising clients it’s time to get out of Moderna.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026

I want to go all the way with this, to stop mucking around and do what I feel, so at the base of the statue I put my favorite punk rallying cry: I’M A MESS.

From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García