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Ave Maria — the Hail Mary in Latin
The Ave Maria: complete Latin text of the Hail Mary with English translation, easy pronunciation guide (gratia plena = GRAH-tsee-ah PLEH-nah), and the history of the prayer from Luke 1 to Ephesus.
Part of the Latin prayers prayer collection.
In brief
The Ave Maria is the Hail Mary in Latin — the same prayer, in the language in which most of Christian history prayed it. Its first half is Gabriel's and Elizabeth's words from Luke 1; its second half is the Church's petition, shaped over centuries.
Prayer: Ave Maria
Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus. Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen.
Source note: Luke 1:28, 1:42 + the Church's petition
Two halves, two sources
The first half of the Ave Maria is almost pure Gospel: "Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum" is Gabriel at the Annunciation (Luke 1:28), and "Benedicta tu in mulieribus…" is Elizabeth greeting Mary at the Visitation (Luke 1:42). The second half — "Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis…" — is the Church answering those greetings the only way she knows how: by asking Mary's prayers, now and at the hour that matters most. For the full line-by-line in English, see our Hail Mary page.
Pronouncing it
- Ave Maria → AH-veh mah-REE-ah
- gratia plena → GRAH-tsee-ah PLEH-nah
- Dominus tecum → DOH-mee-noos TEH-koom
- benedicta tu in mulieribus → beh-neh-DEEK-tah too een moo-lee-EH-ree-boos
- fructus ventris tui → FROOK-toos VEHN-trees TOO-ee
- Iesus → YEH-soos (written I, sounded like a Y)
- ora pro nobis peccatoribus → OH-rah proh NOH-bees peh-kah-TOH-ree-boos
- in hora mortis nostrae → een OH-rah MOHR-tees NOHS-treh (the h is silent)
A short history
The two biblical greetings were used devotionally by the early centuries; joining them into a repeated prayer grew with the Marian feasts and the preaching orders of the Middle Ages. The title the prayer stakes everything on — Mater Dei, Mother of God — was solemnly defended at the Council of Ephesus in 431. By the 1500s the second half had settled into the form we know, and St. Pius V fixed it in the reformed Roman Breviary of 1568 — the text above, prayed identically ever since.
Keep praying
Hail Mary — line by line — what every phrase means, in EnglishHow to pray the Rosary
- Salve Regina — the Rosary's closing hymn, in Latin
- The Memorare — "never was it known…"
Pray the Ave Maria with its meaning in view
The Ave Maria is the Latin form of the Hail Mary. Read the Latin text first if that is how you pray, then use the English meaning to stay attentive to the angel's greeting, Mary's place in the Gospel and the request for her intercession. It can be prayed alone, in the Angelus or within the Rosary.
The page distinguishes the traditional prayer from original pronunciation and context notes. Latin is offered as a historic form alongside English, not as a requirement or a promise of greater effectiveness.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Ave Maria the same as the Hail Mary?
Yes — exactly the same prayer. "Ave Maria" is simply its first two words in Latin, used as its traditional name (the same way "Pater Noster" names the Our Father). Schubert's famous "Ave Maria" is the Latin text set to music.
How do you pronounce "gratia plena"?
GRAH-tsee-ah PLEH-nah. Ecclesiastical Latin sounds ti + vowel as "tsee", which is why gratia is not "GRAH-tee-ah" and caelis is "CHEH-lees". It feels theatrical for a week; then your mouth learns it forever.
Is the Hail Mary in the Bible?
Its first half, nearly word for word: Luke 1:28 (Gabriel) and Luke 1:42 (Elizabeth). The second half — the request for Mary's prayers now and at the hour of death — is the Church's own voice, developed over centuries. We unpack each line on the Hail Mary page.
When is the Ave Maria prayed?
Most famously in the Rosary — 53 times in a five-decade Rosary — but also morning and night, at the Angelus (three times), under church bells at noon in old towns, and in a thousand funerals. It is the default prayer of moments too big for our own words.