- 1[transitive, usually passive] to describe someone or something as being very good or special, especially in newspapers, etc. hail somebody/something as something The conference was hailed as a great success. hail somebody/something + noun Teenager Matt Brown is being hailed a hero for saving a young child from drowning.
- 2[transitive] hail something to signal to a taxi or a bus, in order to get the driver to stop to hail a taxi/cab
- 3[transitive] hail somebody (literary) to call to someone in order to say hello to them or attract their attention A voice hailed us from the other side of the street. We soon came within hailing distance of (= fairly close to) the others.
- 4[intransitive] when it hails, small balls of ice fall like rain from the sky It's hailing! Phrasal Verbshail from..
hail
verbNAmE//heɪl//
Verb Forms present simple I / you / we / they hail he / she / it hails
past simple hailed
-ing form hailing
Check pronunciation: hail