rail

1 of 4

noun (1)

1
a
: a bar extending from one post or support to another and serving as a guard or barrier
b
: a structural member or support
2
b
: a light structure serving as a guard at the outer edge of a ship's deck
c
: a fence bounding a racetrack
3
a
: a bar of rolled steel forming a track for wheeled vehicles
b
: track
c

rail

2 of 4

verb (1)

railed; railing; rails

transitive verb

: to provide with a railing : fence

rail

3 of 4

noun (2)

plural rail or rails
: any of numerous wading birds (family Rallidae, the rail family) that are of small or medium size and have short rounded wings, a short tail, and usually very long toes which enable them to run on the soft mud of marshes

Illustration of rail

Illustration of rail

rail

4 of 4

verb (2)

railed; railing; rails

intransitive verb

: to revile or scold in harsh, insolent, or abusive language
railer noun
Choose the Right Synonym for rail

scold, upbraid, berate, rail, revile, vituperate mean to reproach angrily and abusively.

scold implies rebuking in irritation or ill temper justly or unjustly.

angrily scolding the children

upbraid implies censuring on definite and usually justifiable grounds.

upbraided her assistants for poor research

berate suggests prolonged and often abusive scolding.

berated continually by an overbearing boss

rail (at or against) stresses an unrestrained berating.

railed loudly at their insolence

revile implies a scurrilous, abusive attack prompted by anger or hatred.

an alleged killer reviled in the press

vituperate suggests a violent reviling.

was vituperated for betraying his friends

Examples of rail in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
But things go off the rails when Yoli (One Day at a Time’s Isabella Gomez) brings home Marcos (Nico Greetham), a white boy, born and raised in Mexico. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 18 Mar. 2024 Whoosh is Indonesia’s new high-speed rail line, which opened last fall. Joe Mathews, The Mercury News, 16 Mar. 2024 Trips were canceled on almost all the light rail lines, though not the A line that runs from Denver’s Union Station to Denver International Airport, RTD special projects manager Pauline Haberman said. Bruce Finley, The Denver Post, 15 Mar. 2024 California High-speed rail is coming to the Central Valley. Melissa Gomez, Los Angeles Times, 11 Mar. 2024 The Buena Creek Navigation Center can hold up to 48 individuals near a Sprinter rail line. Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Mar. 2024 After months of negotiation, the Phoenix City Council approved a policy change to reduce the amount of parking spaces apartments that are near downtown and the light rail. Corina Vanek, The Arizona Republic, 6 Mar. 2024 Beyond Florida, the rail company is starting work in southern California to create a rail corridor connecting the state with Las Vegas. Alison Fox, Travel + Leisure, 5 Mar. 2024 Jason Rogers, 44, an electrician, stood in line, shivering and rail thin. Andrew Jacobs, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2024
Verb
Allies have in recent weeks been rattled by dire reports from the front line and worrying signals from the United States, where funding for Ukraine is stalled and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is once again railing against NATO. Beatriz Ríos, Washington Post, 21 Mar. 2024 Former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee for the 2024 presidential election, has railed against EVs in his speeches. Ella Nilsen, CNN, 20 Mar. 2024 Porter ran a poor campaign, emphasizing issues that didn’t click with a low-turnout electorate, railing against corporate corruption of politics. George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 13 Mar. 2024 House Democrats for the last several weeks have railed on the bill in the chamber's education committee and on the House floor arguing against the premise that Indiana universities need the free expression requirements. Brittany Carloni, The Indianapolis Star, 1 Mar. 2024 The first cracks began to appear two years ago, when thousands of Pakistanis rallied alongside an ousted prime minister who had railed against the generals’ iron grip on politics. Christina Goldbaum, New York Times, 21 Feb. 2024 The small group of frustrated senators also pales in comparison with the fury in the House, where hard-right members railed against House Speaker Mike Johnson for not threatening a partial government shutdown over GOP policy priorities. USA TODAY, 8 Mar. 2024 Then Paules took a reciprocating saw to an outdoor metal railing to allow for an easier exit. Joe Heim, Washington Post, 25 Feb. 2024 In the Senate, a group of Republicans opposed to the foreign aid kept the chamber open all night to rail against it before the final vote. Mary Clare Jalonick The Associated Press, arkansasonline.com, 24 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'rail.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English raile, from Anglo-French raille, reille bar, rule, from Latin regula straightedge, rule — more at rule

Noun (2)

Middle English raile, from Middle French raalle

Verb (2)

Middle English, from Middle French railler to mock, probably from Old French reillier to growl, mutter, from Vulgar Latin *ragulare to bray, from Late Latin ragere to neigh

First Known Use

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of rail was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near rail

Cite this Entry

“Rail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rail. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

rail

1 of 4 noun
1
a
: a bar extending from one support to another and serving as a guard or barrier
2
a
: a bar of steel forming a track for wheeled vehicles
b

rail

2 of 4 verb
: to provide with a railing

rail

3 of 4 noun
plural rails or rail
: any of various small wading birds related to the cranes

rail

4 of 4 verb
: to scold or complain in harsh or bitter language
railer noun
Etymology

Noun

Middle English raile "bar, rail," from early French raille, reille "bar, ruler," from Latin regula "straightedge, ruler," from regere "to lead straight, govern, rule" — related to regent, regulate, rule

Noun

Middle English raile "rail (the bird)," from early French raalie (same meaning)

Verb

Middle English railen "to scold, be abusive to," from early French railler "to mock," probably derived from Latin ragere "to neigh"

More from Merriam-Webster on rail

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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