1
: precipitation in the form of small balls or lumps usually consisting of concentric layers of clear ice and compact snow
2
: something that gives the effect of a shower of hail
a hail of rifle fire
hailed; hailing; hails
1
: to precipitate hail (see hail entry 1)
it was hailing hard
2
: to pour down or strike like hail
Bullets were hailing down on them.
hailed; hailing; hails
1
2
: to greet or summon by calling
hail a taxi
: to call out
especially
: to call a greeting to a passing ship
1
—used to express acclamation
hail to the chief—
Sir Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott2
archaic
—used as a salutation
1
: an exclamation of greeting or acclamation
greeted the emperor with a hail
2
: a calling to attract attention
3
: hearing distance
stayed within hail
Synonyms
Examples of hail in a Sentence
Noun (1)
a hail of small stones warned them of the oncoming avalanche
even under the hail of angry questions, the press secretary stayed cool
Verb (2)
the museum director hailed the artist's new installation as a groundbreaking work of genius
let's hail a taxi
hailed the waiter for the check
Noun (2)
stay within hail of the restaurant's front desk so you'll know when your table is ready
Recent Examples on the WebMelissa Gomez, Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2024
The play hails from Netflix and Sonia Friedman Productions.
—Selome Hailu, Variety, 22 May 2024
The show hails from Spin Master, a global children’s entertainment company that’s behind such brands as PAW Patrol, Hatchimals, Melissa & Doug, Rubik’s Cube and GUND.
—Kimberly Nordyke, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 May 2024
Both artists hail from the Sunshine State, and Grey is a huge fan of Anderson.
—Garret K. Woodward, Rolling Stone, 21 May 2024
Crowell, 18, who hails from Hinesville, Georgia, will attend HPU in High Point, North Carolina, later this year under a full-tuition scholarship.
—Nicholas Rice, Peoplemag, 18 May 2024
The Grammy-Award-winning singer, hailing from Michigan, has always felt a profound connection to Ghana.
—Melissa Noel, Essence, 14 May 2024
Built in 1873, the Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel was hailed at the time as an engineering marvel.
—Paolo Confino, Fortune, 10 May 2024
Frank Stella, a painter, sculptor and printmaker whose constantly evolving works are hailed as landmarks of the minimalist and post-painterly abstraction art movements, died Saturday at his home in Manhattan.
—CBS News, 4 May 2024
Daniel Amarante, ABC News, 25 May 2024
Wind gusts of up to 60 mph and half-dollar-sized hail (1.25 inches) are expected.
—Star-Telegram Bot, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 May 2024
The hail was still about a half-foot deep on Tuesday morning and front-end loaders were used to move it, said Curtis Glenn, a trustee at Yuma Methodist Church, which had flooding and hail damage.
—CBS News, 21 May 2024
Large hail, along with strong winds and potential tornadoes, were among the main weather threats.
—Christopher Cann, USA TODAY, 15 May 2024
Demand for $25 concert tickets cripples Live Nation site as sale begins 'The Office' spinoff will feature a newsroom with 'volunteer reporters' Three FEET — not inches — of hail reported in Texas storm.
—Jenny Porter Tilley, The Indianapolis Star, 13 May 2024
The strong storms also brought hail and heavy rains to the state and knocked out power to thousands of utility customers.
—George Walker Iv, Joey Cappelletti, and Ed White, The Christian Science Monitor, 9 May 2024
Severe storms tore through the central and southeast U.S., Wednesday, spawning damaging tornadoes, producing massive hail, and killing two people in Tennessee.
—CBS News, 10 May 2024
Expect tennis-ball-sized hail (2.5 inches) and wind gusts of up to 60 mph.
—Star-Telegram Bot, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 May 2024
Verb
By contrast, Asians and whites make up more than 60% of the undergraduate student body at UCLA, where 9% of undergraduates and 17% of graduate students hail from other nations.
—Melissa Gomez, Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2024
The play hails from Netflix and Sonia Friedman Productions.
—Selome Hailu, Variety, 22 May 2024
The show hails from Spin Master, a global children’s entertainment company that’s behind such brands as PAW Patrol, Hatchimals, Melissa & Doug, Rubik’s Cube and GUND.
—Kimberly Nordyke, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 May 2024
Both artists hail from the Sunshine State, and Grey is a huge fan of Anderson.
—Garret K. Woodward, Rolling Stone, 21 May 2024
Crowell, 18, who hails from Hinesville, Georgia, will attend HPU in High Point, North Carolina, later this year under a full-tuition scholarship.
—Nicholas Rice, Peoplemag, 18 May 2024
The Grammy-Award-winning singer, hailing from Michigan, has always felt a profound connection to Ghana.
—Melissa Noel, Essence, 14 May 2024
Built in 1873, the Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel was hailed at the time as an engineering marvel.
—Paolo Confino, Fortune, 10 May 2024
Frank Stella, a painter, sculptor and printmaker whose constantly evolving works are hailed as landmarks of the minimalist and post-painterly abstraction art movements, died Saturday at his home in Manhattan.
—CBS News, 4 May 2024
Noun
On Sunday, the severe weather risk is expected to spread eastward and expand to include cities like Chicago, St. Louis, Nashville and Little Rock with damaging winds, large hail and strong tornadoes all possible.
—Daniel Amarante, ABC News, 25 May 2024
Wind gusts of up to 60 mph and half-dollar-sized hail (1.25 inches) are expected.
—Star-Telegram Bot, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 May 2024
The hail was still about a half-foot deep on Tuesday morning and front-end loaders were used to move it, said Curtis Glenn, a trustee at Yuma Methodist Church, which had flooding and hail damage.
—CBS News, 21 May 2024
Large hail, along with strong winds and potential tornadoes, were among the main weather threats.
—Christopher Cann, USA TODAY, 15 May 2024
Demand for $25 concert tickets cripples Live Nation site as sale begins 'The Office' spinoff will feature a newsroom with 'volunteer reporters' Three FEET — not inches — of hail reported in Texas storm.
—Jenny Porter Tilley, The Indianapolis Star, 13 May 2024
The strong storms also brought hail and heavy rains to the state and knocked out power to thousands of utility customers.
—George Walker Iv, Joey Cappelletti, and Ed White, The Christian Science Monitor, 9 May 2024
Severe storms tore through the central and southeast U.S., Wednesday, spawning damaging tornadoes, producing massive hail, and killing two people in Tennessee.
—CBS News, 10 May 2024
Expect tennis-ball-sized hail (2.5 inches) and wind gusts of up to 60 mph.
—Star-Telegram Bot, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 May 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hail.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to hail
Dictionary Entries Near hail
Cite this Entry
“Hail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hail. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hail
1 of 5 noun1
: small lumps of ice that fall from clouds sometimes during thunderstorms
2
: something that gives the effect of falling hail
a hail of bullets
hail
2 of 5 verb1
: to fall as hail
2
: to pour down like hail
hail
3 of 5 interjection1
—used to express enthusiastic approval
2
archaic
—used as a greeting
hail
4 of 5 verb1
a
b
: to greet with enthusiastic approval : acclaim
hailed them as heroes
2
: to summon by calling
hail a taxi
3
: to call out to
hail a passing ship
hail
5 of 5 noun1
: an act or instance of hailing
2
: hearing distance
stayed within hail
Etymology
Noun
Old English hægl "lumps of ice, hail"
Interjection
Middle English hail (an interjection of approval or greeting), derived from early Norse heill "healthy" — related to hale entry 1, wassail
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