Rally Means to Gather Again
To rally is to come together after being scattered. The word covers political meetings, tennis exchanges and stock market recoveries.
To rally is to come together again after being dispersed, or to recover strength. The word is military at heart: French *rallier* means to re-unite, from *re-* plus *allier*, to ally. Troops scattered in battle were rallied back into formation, and every later use keeps that shape — a political rally gathers supporters, a stock market rallies after a fall, a patient rallies after illness. A tennis rally is a different image: a continuous exchange of shots.
- To gather again. *Rally the troops.*
- A mass meeting. *A political rally.*
- To recover. *Shares rallied.*
- A tennis exchange. *A long rally.*
- French — *rallier*, to reunite. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb | rally | Rally round. |
| Past | rallied | Rallied. |
| Noun | rally | A rally. |
| Plural | rallies | Rallies. |
| French | rallier | To reunite. |
- The officer rallied his men.Military.
- Thousands attended the rally.Meeting.
- The market rallied late in the day.Finance.
Senses of rally
- Military — reforming scattered troops
- Political — a mass gathering of supporters
- Financial — a recovery in prices after a fall
- Medical — a patient regaining strength
- Motorsport — a long-distance timed race over stages
French *rallier*, to reunite, from Old French *re-* plus *alier*, to ally, from Latin *alligare*, to bind.
Are rally and ally related?
Yes. Rally is literally to re-ally, to bring back together into one body.
Why is a motor race called a rally?
Because competitors gathered at set points along the route, so the event was named for the gathering rather than the driving.