Hail Mary
noun
plural Hail Marys
1
: a Roman Catholic prayer to the Virgin Mary that consists of salutations and a plea for her intercession
2
or less commonly Hail Mary pass
: a long forward pass in football thrown into or near the end zone in a last-ditch attempt to score as time runs out
—often used figuratively
The only potential cure is a stem-cell transplant, when you take somebody else's immune system and put it into yours. But right now that's kind of a Hail Mary pass.—
Douglas Cote, quoted in Bicycling
Douglas Cote, quoted in BicyclingExamples of Hail Mary in a Sentence
He threw up a Hail Mary at the end of the first half.
Recent Examples on the Web
How 17 seconds turned into a devastating Hail Mary loss for the Chicago Bears.
—Dan Wiederer, Chicago Tribune, 29 Oct. 2024
The Commanders are no longer big underdogs, and millions of fans and bettors had a similar reaction to Commanders head coach Dan Quinn’s in his moment of joy, and even disbelief as the Hail Mary was answered in Washington.
—Jay Ginsbach, Forbes, 28 Oct. 2024
And in the most dramatic of finishes, the rookie phenom’s heaved pass towards the endzone was tipped by a huddle of players right into the waiting hands of Noah Brown for a 52-yard walk-off Hail Mary touchdown and 18-15 victory for the Commanders.
—Ben Morse, CNN, 28 Oct. 2024
On the final play of the game, the Bears simply had to knock down a Hail Mary pass attempt to keep pace in the division.
—Dane Mizutani, Twin Cities, 28 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for Hail Mary 
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Dan Wiederer, Chicago Tribune, 29 Oct. 2024
The Commanders are no longer big underdogs, and millions of fans and bettors had a similar reaction to Commanders head coach Dan Quinn’s in his moment of joy, and even disbelief as the Hail Mary was answered in Washington.
—Jay Ginsbach, Forbes, 28 Oct. 2024
And in the most dramatic of finishes, the rookie phenom’s heaved pass towards the endzone was tipped by a huddle of players right into the waiting hands of Noah Brown for a 52-yard walk-off Hail Mary touchdown and 18-15 victory for the Commanders.
—Ben Morse, CNN, 28 Oct. 2024
On the final play of the game, the Bears simply had to knock down a Hail Mary pass attempt to keep pace in the division.
—Dane Mizutani, Twin Cities, 28 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for Hail Mary
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Cite this Entry
“Hail Mary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Hail%20Mary. Accessed 13 Nov. 2024.
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