to rally round the flag
1
7.4
- idiom
:
unirse
- During the emergency, the community decided to rally round the flag and support their leaders.
- rally round the flag, boys
Examples
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Also, refer to advantage #4: any external stress seems more likely to cause Jordanians to rally 'round the flag than to divide and start fighting.
Blog text (17) -
The typical response of a people in the face of sanctions is, in fact, to "rally 'round the flag," and support the leadership in the face of foreign coercion.
Academic text (1999) -
I wouldn't want some new occupation, and I agree the Iranian people will rally round the flag at first, but I think some will be quite happy to see the regime beaten up, and more importantly, the infrastructure it uses to maintain control.
Blog text (11) -
David Crumm writes in a March 19, 2003, Detroit Free Press article: "As U.S. forces head toward war, antiwar sentiments are butting up against the instinct to rally 'round the flag...
Academic text (2003) -
In times of crisis, citizens usually rally round the flag to show their support for the nation.
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When faced with challenges, people often rally round the flag to demonstrate their unity.
Synonyms
70
1.9
Come together in a group near someone or something
34
3.1
Join with other people to work together for a common purpose
33
3.4
To join others to support the same cause
30
4.1
To come together to support someone in a hard time
8
8.8
Join together to protect each other from outside criticism
5
3.8
To come together and support the same cause
3
3.4
To make a group feel part of the same community
1
3.9
To come together to help someone or a cause
Antonyms
How United
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is compositionally built from 'rally' (to assemble/support), 'round' (around), and 'flag' (a symbol), so the image of people gathering around a flag to show united support is directly derivable. This spatial/metaphorical composition is common cross-linguistically and not deeply idiomatic, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words would very likely infer the intended meaning.
Etymology
The idiom rally round the flag comes from soldiers who would rally round their flag in battle so they could find their leaders and stay together. So today it means 'to come together' and show united support for a leader, cause, or country in a crisis.