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

The recent rally in sterling versus the euro largely reflects French debt concerns but the U.K. currency could start to receive support from BOE policy if it lifts rates in November, he says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

Copper’s red-hot rally this year reflects a dislocation, according to Charles Cooper, head of copper research at Wood Mackenzie.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

Brazil is battling soaring public debt exacerbated by high interest rates, and the election result saw the Sao Paulo stock exchange rally to record highs.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

The past few years have seen several examples where falling Treasury yields spurred a sudden rally in bonds and rate-sensitive stocks, a group that also includes home builders and small caps.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026

The 1938 Nuremberg party rally was the largest ever.

From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

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

Videos of his campaign rallies have gone viral in the football-mad nation that is jointly hosting the next World Cup along with Spain and Portugal.

From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026

She found Georgia-based print shops to make pink “Senator My Boo” buttons and has been working with local Democratic activists and volunteers to distribute them at Ossoff’s rallies, including one he held Sunday in Athens.

From Salon ● Sep. 20, 2026

Lori had always made very good posters, for football rallies, for the plays the drama club put on, and for candidates running for student council.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls

Meanwhile, Britain’s Labour government stalled on corroborating its ally’s assertions while Labour held its annual conference and rallied to a new prime minister, Andy Burnham.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 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

Price rallied in set eight and won three successive legs to force a best-of-three finale, but, after a short break, Humphries found another gear.

From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026

Pershing Square Inc. shares have rallied despite weak fund performance, leaving Bill Ackman’s management company with a lofty valuation.

From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026

You would hardly guess it, but Mr. Wheeler is no little Flutist, and played us all Tunes while we rallied him on the droll Faces he makes when he blows.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson

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

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

After rallying briefly, the Rams could not hold off the Broncos in a 30-26 defeat in front of 76,633 at Empower Field at Mile High.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026

After he was taken off the tour on 14 September, Macklemore accused stadium owners of rallying together to push him out.

From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026

I was exhausted from trying to change things and exhausted from rallying myself again and again to keep thinking I could.

From "Tradition" by Brendan Kiely