line (lines plural & 3rd person present) (lining present participle) (lined past tense & past participle )
1 n-count A line is a long thin mark which is drawn or painted on a surface.
Draw a line down that page's center., ...a dotted line..., The ball had clearly crossed the line.
2 n-count The lines on someone's skin, especially on their face, are long thin marks that appear there as they grow older.
usu pl
(=wrinkle)
He has a large, generous face with deep lines.
3 n-count A line of people or things is a number of them arranged one behind the other or side by side.
oft N of n
(=row)
The sparse line of spectators noticed nothing unusual.
4 n-count A line of people or vehicles is a number of them that are waiting one behind another, for example in order to buy something or to go in a particular direction.
(=queue)
Children clutching empty bowls form a line...
5 n-count A line of a piece of writing is one of the rows of words, numbers, or other symbols in it.
The next line should read: Five days, 23.5 hours..., Tina wouldn't have read more than three lines.
6 n-count A line of a poem, song, or play is a group of words that are spoken or sung together. If an actor learns his or her lines for a play or film, they learn what they have to say.
...a line from Shakespeare's Othello: `one that loved not wisely but too well'..., Learning lines is very easy. Acting is very difficult.
7 n-var You can refer to a long piece of wire, string, or cable as a line when it is used for a particular purpose.
usu with supp
She put her washing on the line., ...a piece of fishing-line..., The winds downed power lines.
8 n-count A line is a connection which makes it possible for two people to speak to each other on the telephone.
oft on the N
The telephone lines went dead..., It's not a very good line. Shall we call you back Susan?..., She's on the line from her home in Boston.
9 n-count You can use line to refer to a telephone number which you can ring in order to get information or advice.
oft in names after n
...the 24-hours information line.
10 n-count A line is a route, especially a dangerous or secret one, along which people move or send messages or supplies.
usu pl, usu with supp
Negotiators say they're keeping communication lines open., ...the guerrillas' main supply lines.
11 n-count The line in which something or someone moves is the particular route that they take, especially when they keep moving straight ahead.
Walk in a straight line..., The wings were at right angles to the line of flight.
12 n-count A line is a particular route, involving the same stations, roads, or stops along which a train or bus service regularly operates.
usu with supp, oft in names after n
They've got to ride all the way to the end of the line..., I would be able to stay on the Piccadilly Line and get off the tube at South Kensington.
13 n-count A railway line consists of the pieces of metal and wood which form the track that the trains travel along.
(=track)
14 n-count A shipping, air, or bus line is a company which provides services for transporting people or goods by sea, air, or bus. (BUSINESS) usu supp N
(=company)
The Foreign Office offered to pay the shipping line all the costs of diverting the ship to Bermuda.
15 n-count A state or county line is a boundary between two states or counties.
(AM) usu sing, with supp
(=border)
...the California state line.
16 n-count You can use lines to refer to the set of physical defences or the soldiers that have been established along the boundary of an area occupied by an army.
Their unit was shelling the German lines only seven miles away.
17 n-count The particular line that a person has towards a problem is the attitude that they have towards it. For example, if someone takes a hard line on something, they have a firm strict policy which they refuse to change.
usu sing, with supp
Forty members of the governing Conservative party rebelled, voting against the government line...
18 n-count You can use line to refer to the way in which someone's thoughts or activities develop, particularly if it is logical.
usu N of n/-ing
What are some of the practical benefits likely to be of this line of research?
19 n-plural If you say that something happens along particular lines, or on particular lines, you are giving a general summary or approximate account of what happens, which may not be correct in every detail.
usu along/on N with supp
He'd said something along those lines already..., Our forecast for 1990 was on the right lines...
20 n-plural If something is organized on particular lines, or along particular lines, it is organized according to that method or principle.
on/along N with supp
...so-called autonomous republics based on ethnic lines., ...reorganising old factories to work along Japanese lines.
21 n-count Your lineof business or work is the kind of work that you do. (BUSINESS) usu N of n
So what was your father's line of business?..., In my line of work I often get home too late for dinner.
22 n-count A line is a particular type of product that a company makes or sells.
His best selling line is the cheapest lager at £1.99.
23 n-count In a factory, a line is an arrangement of workers or machines where a product passes from one worker to another until it is finished.
...a production line capable of producing three different products.
24 n-count You can use line when you are referring to a number of people who are ranked according to status.
usu sing, oft N of n, ord in N
Nicholas Paul Patrick was seventh in the line of succession to the throne..., ...the man who stands next in line for the presidency.
25 n-count A particular lineof people or things is a series of them that has existed over a period of time, when they have all been similar in some way, or done similar things.
usu sing, usu N of n
We were part of a long line of artists..., It's the latest in a long line of tragedies.
26 verb If people or things line a road, room, or other place, they are present in large numbers along its edges or sides.
Thousands of local people lined the streets and clapped as the procession went by. V n
...a square lined with pubs and clubs. V-ed
-lined comb in adj
...a long tree-lined drive.
27 verb If you line a wall, container, or other object, you put a layer of something such as leaves or paper on the inside surface of it in order to make it stronger, warmer, or cleaner.
Scoop the blanket weed out and use it to line hanging baskets... V n
Female bears tend to line their dens with leaves or grass. V n with n
-lined comb in adj
...a dark, suede-lined case.
28 verb If something lines a container or area, especially an area inside a person, animal, or plant, it forms a layer on the inside surface.
...the muscles that line the intestines. V n
29
→
lined
→
lining
→
bottom line
→
branch line
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dividing line
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front line
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party line
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picket line
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yellow line
30 If you draw the lineat a particular activity, you refuse to do it, because you disapprove of it or because it is more extreme than what you normally do.
draw the line phrase V inflects, oft PHR at n/-ing
Letters have come from prisoners, declaring that they would draw the line at hitting an old lady.
31 If you draw a linebetween two things, you make a distinction between them.
draw a line phrase V inflects
(=distinguish)
It is, however, not possible to draw a distinct line between the two categories.
32 If you do something or if it happens to you in the line of duty, you do it or it happens as part of your regular work or as a result of it.
in the line of duty phrase PHR after v, v-link PHR
More than 3,000 police officers were wounded in the line of duty last year.
33 If you refer to a method as the first line of, for example, defence or treatment, you mean that it is the first or most important method to be used in dealing with a problem.
the first line of phrase PHR n
Passport checks will remain the first line of defence against terrorists...
34 If you are in linefor something, it is likely to happen to you or you are likely to obtain it. If something is in lineto happen, it is likely to happen.
in line phrase PHR for n, PHR to-inf
(=due)
He must be in line for a place in the Guinness Book of Records..., Public sector pay is also in line to be hit hard.
35 If one object is in linewith others, or moves into linewith others, they are arranged in a line. You can also say that a number of objects are in line or move into line.
in/into line phrase v-link PHR, PHR after v, oft PHR with n
The device itself was right under the vehicle, almost in line with the gear lever..., Venus, the Sun and Earth all moved into line.
36 If one thing is in linewith another, or is brought into linewith it, the first thing is, or becomes, similar to the second, especially in a way that has been planned or expected.
in/into line phrase usu PHR after v, v-link PHR, oft PHR with n
The structure of our schools is now broadly in line with the major countries of the world..., This brings the law into line with most medical opinion.
37 When people stand in line or wait in line, they stand one behind the other in a line, waiting their turn for something.
(AM)
stand/wait in line phrase V inflects
I had been standing in line for three hours.
in BRIT, use queue
38 If you keep someone in line or bring them into line, you make them obey you, or you make them behave in the way you want them to.
in line/into line phrase PHR after v
All this was just designed to frighten me and keep me in line., ...if the Prime Minister fails to bring rebellious Tories into line.
39 If a machine or piece of equipment comes on line, it starts operating. If it is off line, it is not operating.
on line phrase usu PHR after v
The new machine will go on line in June 2006..., Every second her equipment was off line cost the company money.
40 If you do something on line, you do it using a computer or a computer network.
on line phrase PHR after v, v-link PHR, PHR n
They can order their requirements on line., ...on-line transaction processing.
41 If something such as your job, career, or reputation is on the line , you may lose or harm it as a result of what you are doing or of the situation you are in.
INFORMAL
on the line phrase usu PHR after v, v-link PHR
He wouldn't put his career on the line to help a friend.
42 If one thing is out of line with another, the first thing is different from the second in a way that was not agreed, planned, or expected.
out of line phrase usu v-link PHR, oft PHR with n
...if one set of figures is sharply out of line with a trend.
43 If someone steps out of line, they disobey someone or behave in an unacceptable way.
out of line phrase v PHR, v-link PHR
Any one of my players who steps out of line will be in trouble with me as well..., You're way out of line, lady.
44 If you read between the lines, you understand what someone really means, or what is really happening in a situation, even though it is not said openly.
read between the lines phrase V inflects
Reading between the lines, it seems neither Cole nor Ledley King will be going to Japan.
45
→
to sign on the dotted line
→
dotted
→
to line your pockets
→
pocket
→
the line of least resistance
→
resistance
→
to toe the line
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toe line up
1 phrasal verb If people line up or if you line them up, they move so that they are standing in a line.
The senior leaders lined up behind him in orderly rows... V P
The gym teachers lined us up against the cement walls... V n P
When he came back the sergeant had lined up the terrorists. V P n (not pron)
2 phrasal verb If you line things up, you move them into a straight row.
I would line up my toys on this windowsill and play... V P n (not pron)
He finished polishing the cocktail glasses and lined them up behind the bar. V n P
3 phrasal verb If you line one thing upwith another, or one thing lines upwith another, the first thing is moved into its correct position in relation to the second. You can also say that two things line up, or are lined up.
(=align)
You have to line the car up with the ones beside you... V n P with n
Gas cookers are adjustable in height to line up with your kitchen work top... V P with n
Mahoney had lined up two of the crates... V P pl-n
When the images line up exactly, the projectors should be fixed in place... pl-n V P
All we have to do is to get the two pieces lined up properly. V-ed P, Also V P n with n, V pl-n P
4 phrasal verb If you line up an event or activity, you arrange for it to happen. If you line someone up for an event or activity, you arrange for them to be available for that event or activity.
She lined up executives, politicians and educators to serve on the board of directors... V P n to-inf
Bob Dylan is lining up a two-week UK tour for the New Year. V P n (not pron), Also V n P, V n P to-inf
