Hail Mary

[heyl mer-ee, mair-ee] / ˈheɪl ˈmɛr i, ˈmɛər i /

NOUN

last-ditch effort

Synonyms

WEAK

Ave Maria Hail Mary pass Hail Mary play ave last-minute pass

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“With the last $20,000, as a Hail Mary, we created and launched Subway Takes,” says Kuo, who produces the show.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026

Third place went to Amazon MGM's hit sci-fi adventure comedy "Project Hail Mary," with $13.2 million.

From Barron's • Apr. 26, 2026

The plaintiffs then filed a Hail Mary request with the Supreme Court to intervene before the D.C.

From Slate • Apr. 21, 2026

Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who also made 21 Jump Street and The Lego Movie together, Project Hail Mary follows a former molecular biologist who unwittingly embarks on an important intergalactic mission.

From BBC • Mar. 23, 2026

When we finished saying Hail Mary about three hundred times, we said our personal prayers silently, which was kept to a minimum, since our knees would be killing us by then.

From "The Secret Life of Bees" by Sue Monk Kidd