rallying cry

noun

plural rallying cries

1

: a shouted word, phrase, or sound used by a body of fighters before or in battle : battle cry, war cry

… the innocent ejaculation hurrah! became a fearsome rallying cry in Napoleonic times.

—Geoffrey Hughes

2

: something (such as a catchphrase, incident, or event) that is used to excite people to support a cause or to rouse people to action

Lions captain Sam Warburton issued a rallying cry to his team yesterday … by urging them to "reach for the stars".

—Mick Cleary

Ultimately, just 6 per cent of people would tell businesses to "keep doing what you're doing". If these findings do not act as a rallying cry for change, it is unclear what will.

—Frank Luntz

Both campaigns have seized on the attempt to ban that book in schools as a rallying cry.

—Edward Keenan

The much-despised gabelle, a tax first imposed on salt in France in the 13th century and at times soaring to 10 times the cost of producing salt in the first place, became a rallying cry for the French Revolution …

—Ligaya Mishan

Examples of rallying cry in a Sentence

the rallying cry of a political movement

“We believe!” became the rallying cry of the fans.

Recent Examples on the Web

Outside of the United States, the song being an international rallying cry successfully appealed to audiences overseas, also reaching No. 1 in Australia, France, Ireland, New Zealand, The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. —Jade Gomez, People.com, 4 Nov. 2024

Vice President Kamala Harris will make her closing argument for the presidency on Tuesday evening from the Ellipse — the same historic park where former President Donald Trump delivered an infamous rallying cry to his supporters on Jan. 6, 2021. —Nina Turner, Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2024

The big picture: There's a rallying cry echoing throughout the country music community to support Appalachia, from artists like Church and Combs to Dolly Parton and Morgan Wallen. —Ashley Mahoney, Axios, 7 Oct. 2024

Here are some five takeaways and the full list of award winners: Democracy under threat With Russian – or Soviet – rule still vivid in the memories of the Baltic nations, solidarity with Ukraine, indie Georgian cinema and Belarusian filmmakers in exile were natural rallying cries in Tallinn. —Annika Pham, Variety, 23 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1797, in the meaning defined at sense 2