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• sally
  sally

  noun

  a sortie of troops from a besieged place upon an enemy.
• Sally
  Sally

  noun

  a female given name, form of Sarah.

sally

¹ American  

[sal-ee] / ˈsæl i /

noun

plural

sallies

1. a sortie of troops from a besieged place upon an enemy.

2. a sudden rushing forth or activity.

3. an excursion or trip, usually off the main course.

4. an outburst or flight of passion, fancy, etc..

   a sally of anger.

5. a clever, witty, or fanciful remark.

   Synonyms:

   witticism, quip

6. Carpentry. a projection, as of the end of a rafter beyond the notch by which the rafter is fitted over the wall plate.

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verb (used without object)

sallied, sallying

1. to make a sally, as a body of troops from a besieged place.

2. to set out on a side trip or excursion.

3. to set out briskly or energetically.

4. (of things) to issue forth.

Sally ² American  

[sal-ee] / ˈsæl i /

Or Sallie

noun

1. a female given name, form of Sarah.

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sally ¹ British  

/ ˈsælɪ /

noun

1. a sudden violent excursion, esp by besieged forces to attack the besiegers; sortie

2. a sudden outburst or emergence into action, expression, or emotion

3. an excursion or jaunt

4. a jocular retort

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verb

1. to make a sudden violent excursion

2. (often foll by forth) to go out on an expedition, etc

3. to come, go, or set out in an energetic manner

4. to rush out suddenly

Sally ² British  

/ ˈsælɪ /

noun

1. a member of the Salvation Army

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sally ³ British  

/ ˈsælɪ /

noun

1. the lower part of a bell rope, where it is caught at handstroke, into which coloured wool is woven to make a grip

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Other Word Forms

• outsally verb (used with object)
• sallier noun
• unsallying adjective

Etymology

Origin of sally

1535–45; < Middle French saillie attack, noun use of feminine past participle of saillir to rush forward < Latin salīre to leap

Explanation

A sally is a military action, a sudden charge in the direction of the enemy. A sally sometimes has the advantage of taking the opposing army by surprise. When soldiers who have been on the defensive, having retreated to a foxhole or fort, make an abrupt offensive attack on their opponents, it's a sally. Another word for this kind of sally is a sortie. You can also call a sudden funny remark or comeback a sally, especially during a witty, back-and-forth, or bantering kind of conversation. The word comes from the Middle French saillie, "a rushing forth," from the Latin salire, "to leap."

Example Sentences

The Uber initiative is the latest sally in a long war pitting plaintiffs and their lawyers against businesses, with legal fees as the battleground.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 16, 2026

“Plainclothes agents have been embedded in transport vans, sally ports, processing areas, and detention cells to gather important tactical intelligence and or information,” a document on Benchwarmer reads.

From Salon • Jan. 15, 2026

As with the adoption of Casual Fridays, the first sally in the contemporary battle for comfort, there remains confusion as to what exactly constitutes acceptable office attire.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 28, 2025

Chess, by and large, is a war game played by nonmartial people who would have trouble identifying the business end of an M16 or explaining the difference between an embrasure and a sally port.

From Washington Times • Sep. 26, 2023

Fortunately, this sally port was used mainly for official vehicles—prison vans, state-police cars, ambulances—and it was a weekend day, so there wasn’t much traffic.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover