volley

noun
vol·​ley | \ ˈvä-lē How to pronounce volley (audio) \
plural volleys

Definition of volley

 (Entry 1 of 2)

1a(1) : the flight of the ball (as in volleyball or tennis) or its course before striking the ground also : a return of the ball before it touches the ground
(2) : a kick of the ball in soccer before it rebounds
(3) : the exchange of the shuttlecock in badminton following the serve
b : a flight of missiles (such as arrows)
c : simultaneous discharge of a number of missile weapons
d : one round per gun in a battery fired as soon as a gun is ready without regard to order
2a : a burst or emission of many things or a large amount at once received a volley of angry letters
b : a burst of simultaneous or immediately sequential nerve impulses passing to an end organ, synapse, or center

volley

verb
volleyed; volleying

Definition of volley (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : to propel (an object) while in the air and before touching the ground especially : to hit (a tennis ball) on the volley
2 : to discharge in or as if in a volley

intransitive verb

1 : to make a volley specifically : to volley an object of play (as in tennis)
2 : to become discharged in or as if in a volley

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Other Words from volley

Verb

volleyer noun

Examples of volley in a Sentence

Noun

The tank was hit by a volley of bullets. She was overwhelmed by a volley of questions from the press.

Verb

She volleyed the shot over the net.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Whenever police phalanxes ready fresh volleys of tear gas, Kwong puts himself in front of the protesters, trying to buy time for a retreat. Time, "'Whenever There’s Trouble He Rushes There.' Meet Legislator Roy Kwong, the God of Hong Kong Protests," 20 July 2019 Trump unleased a volley of Twitter messages Thursday leading up to the conference. Marcy Gordon, chicagotribune.com, "Trump complains of social media bias, then praises far-right conservatives for using the platforms well," 11 July 2019 Roger's volley of food begins with simple oysters; scallop crudo with crispy Iberico ham; baby heirloom tomato and tomato gelee; asparagus tempura with Romesco sauce; and steak tartare wrapped in an edible front page of the Houston Chronicle. Greg Morago, Houston Chronicle, "MAD: A sensory ambush arrives at River Oaks District," 19 June 2019 Throughout, Ikonomou’s style veers between flights of incantatory lyricism and volleys of funny lines and tough street talk. Francine Prose, Harper's magazine, "Down and Out in the Peloponnesus," 10 Apr. 2019 Midway through the second half the host held a 1-0 lead when Clarence Seedorf played a delightful cross-field pass, which was met sensationally by the left boot of Inzaghi; sending a deft volley past Pinto the draw the scores level. SI.com, "The 5 Greatest Pre-Season Goals of the Modern Era," 22 July 2019 Bou made his Revolution debut last week with a goal on a blistering volley en route to a 4-0 win against the Vancouver Whitecaps. Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Tijuana Xolos open Liga MX season with cast of new characters," 19 July 2019 At risk of losing his serve at 5-5, which would have essentially gift-wrapped the victory for the Swiss, Djokovic lunged full-out to stab back a winning volley. Liz Clarke, The Denver Post, "Novak Djokovic beats Roger Federer in marathon fifth set to win second straight Wimbledon title," 14 July 2019 There were more fireworks: Nadal running down a Federer volley and flicking his backhand to drop deep in the corner, an impossible get; Federer flying in on his forehand. Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, "Federer and Nadal’s Wimbledon Rematch Showed Just How Alike the Two Greats Have Become," 12 July 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Then, nearly a minute into added time, Bou volleyed a shot with the outside of his right foot from the penalty arc off Gil’s corner, Sibiga confirming the goal after a VAR replay. Frank Dell’apa, BostonGlobe.com, "Gustavo Bou has spectacular debut in leading Revolution to shutout of Vancouver," 18 July 2019 To head it to himself twice, to then volley to himself over his defender and to then come up with an unstoppable finish: what a goal. Avi Creditor, SI.com, "The MLS XI, Week 19: Drama, Rivalries and Controversy," 15 July 2019 The striker volleyed a corner to keep the home side in the match. Jake Shapiro, The Denver Post, "The Colorado Rapids were delayed 222 minutes: 5 things we learned from a wet loss to New England," 5 July 2019 The family volleys weekly from one trend to another: Monogrammed this, Yeezy that. Liana Satenstein, Vogue, "Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner are Wearing Tom Ford’s Gucci—As They Should," 23 Aug. 2018 But Louisville City leveled just six minutes later as Ownby pivoted and chipped a pass across the box to Oscar Jimenez, who volleyed it in at the near post. Danielle Lerner, The Courier-Journal, "LouCity FC stuns New England Revolution in U.S. Open Cup," 5 June 2018 The tension mounts as the two actors volley back and forth, telling light stories, pretending to relate, all while Camp’s Chesney is building a case against his enemy. Nicole Sperling, HWD, "The Looming Tower: A Surprise Shout Was Key to Bill Camp’s Killer Interrogation Scene," 1 June 2018 Leah Shumate sent a free kick from the left wing into the box, where junior defender Reilly Riggs volleyed it toward the net. Matt Le Cren, Naperville Sun, "Breakthrough: Katelynn Buescher's goal sends Naperville North girls soccer to first state berth since 2013," 29 May 2018 Trump’s administration and the North Korean leader were scheduled to come to the table next month, but recently leaders have been verbally volleying shots at each other. Natalie Dreier, ajc, "Reports: North Korea demolishes nuclear test site," 24 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'volley.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of volley

Noun

1573, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Verb

1591, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2

History and Etymology for volley

Noun

Middle French volee flight, from voler to fly, from Old French, from Latin volare

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More Definitions for volley

volley

noun

English Language Learners Definition of volley

 (Entry 1 of 2)

sports : a shot or kick made by hitting a ball before it touches the ground
: a large number of bullets, arrows, stones, etc., that are shot or thrown at the same time
: a lot of comments, questions, etc., that are directed at a person very quickly

volley

verb

English Language Learners Definition of volley (Entry 2 of 2)