Line — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

noun verb /ˈlīn/

Meaning & Definition of Line

Line (noun)

  1. a length of cord or cord-like material
  2. a comparatively strong slender cord
  3. clothesline

Line (verb)

  1. to mark or cover with a line or lines
  2. to depict with lines, draw
  3. to place or form a line along
  4. to cover the inner surface of
  5. to put something in the inside of, fill
  6. to serve as the lining of

Line (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. a series of persons or things arranged one behind another

    "the line for tickets stretched around the block"

    similar: column, cue, file, queue, range, string, train
    related: echelon, rank, row, tier, chain, progression, sequence, succession, array

  2. a way of acting or proceeding

    "since the election, the president has taken a very conservative line"

    similar: course, methodology, policy, procedure, program
    related: blueprint, design, plan, scheme, strategy, intent, intention, purpose, approach, direction, method, path, pathway, tack

  3. the activity by which one regularly makes a living

    "my line of business is pre-owned vehicles, and have I got a deal for you!"

    similar: calling, employment, game, lay, occupation, profession, trade, vocation, work
    related: call, lifework, business, enterprise, field, livelihood, living, métier, racket (slang), assignment, engagement, gig, mission, art, craft, handcraft, handicraft, appointment, berth, billet, office, place, position, post, situation, duty, function, job, load, task, workload
    near: avocation, hobby, pursuit

  4. a region of activity, knowledge, or influence

    "advanced mathematics is a little outside of my line, but I'll see what I can do to help"

    similar: area, arena, bailiwick, barony, business, circle, demesne, department, discipline, domain, element, fief, fiefdom, field, firmament, front, game, kingdom, precinct, province, realm, specialty, sphere, terrain, walk
    related: frontier, study, subject, territory, turf, occupation, profession, pursuit, racket, vocation, ambit, amplitude, breadth, compass, confine, dimension(s), extent, ken, reach, scope, sweep, width, subfield, subspecialty

  5. a real or imaginary point beyond which a person or thing cannot go

    "you really crossed the line with that outrageous display of bad behavior"

    similar: bound, boundary, cap, ceiling, confines, end, extent, limit, limitation, termination
    related: extremity, fag end, terminus, border, brim, edge, margin, rim, verge, outside, bar, barrier, fence, hedge, restraint, stop, wall

  6. a long hollow cylinder for carrying a substance (as a liquid or gas)

    "the workers rushed to fix the leak in the gas line"

    similar: channel, conduit, duct, leader, penstock, pipe, trough, tube
    related: drain, drainpipe, funnel, hydrant, main, smokestack, spout, standpipe, stovepipe, tile, waste pipe, waterspout, pipage, pipeline, piping

  7. a length of braided, flexible material that is used for tying or connecting things

    "he made sure to bring extra fishing line in case a fish broke free"

    similar: cable, cord, lace, lacing, rope, string, wire
    related: guy, halyard, lanyard, stay, bungee cord, whipcord

  8. a group of vehicles traveling together or under one management

    "she owns a line of limousines"

    similar: armada, caravan, cavalcade, fleet, motorcade, train
    related: argosy, convoy, flotilla, navy, column, cortege, parade, procession

  9. the direction along which something or someone moves

    "the airplane took a southerly line toward the capital"

    similar: course, path, pathway, route, routeway (chiefly British), steps, track, way
    related: circle, circuit, loop, orbit, arc, flight path, trajectory, ascent, descent

  10. a group of persons who come from the same ancestor

    "a 10th of all island residents are members of the line of this early settler"

    similar: blood, clan, family, folks, house, kin, kindred, kinfolk, kinsfolk, lineage, people, race (archaic), stock, tribe
    related: blended family, nuclear family, extended family, household, kith, brood, descendant, issue, offspring, progeny, scion, seed, clansman, kinsman, kinswoman, relative, dynasty
    near: ancestry, birth, descent, extraction, origin, pedigree

  11. the line of ancestors from whom a person is descended

    "he comes from a noble line that goes back several centuries"

    similar: ancestry, birth, blood, bloodline, breeding, descent, extraction, family tree, genealogy, lineage, origin, parentage, pedigree, stock, strain
    related: heredity, succession, family, house, kin, kindred, relations, relatives, race (archaic)
    opposite: issue, posterity, progeny, seed
    near: offspring, child, heir, inheritor, son, successor

Line (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. as in line up, align

    similar: align, cue, line up, queue, emplace, place, set, unscramble, alphabetize, file, hierarchize, prioritize, sequence, display, map (out), set out, arrange, array, balance, classify, codify, dispose, draw up, equalize, even, lay out, marshal, order, organize, proportion, range, regularize, standardize, systematize, groom, make up, spruce (up), straighten (up), tidy (up)
    opposite: derange, disarrange, disarray, disorder, mess (up), muss (up), rumple, misalign

  2. as in surround, embrace

    similar: bound, embrace, encircle, enclose, fence, margin, rim, surround, attach (to), communicate (with), connect (with), link (with), contact, converge, meet, abut, adjoin, border (on), butt (on or against), flank, fringe, join, march (with), neighbor, skirt, touch, verge (on)

Related Entry: Line drawing (noun)

Line drawing is a different word from Line. The synonyms below are for line drawing, not for line.

  1. as in watercolor, charcoal

    similar: aquatint, charcoal, pastel, watercolor, engraving, etch, etching, blueprint, depiction, image, likeness, portrait, representation, caricature, doodle, illustration, contour, figure, outline, silhouette, cartoon, delineation, drawing, sketch

Related Entry: Line drawings (noun)

Line drawings is a different word from Line. The synonyms below are for line drawings, not for line.

  1. as in watercolors, charcoals

    similar: aquatints, charcoals, pastels, watercolors, engravings, etches, etchings, blueprints, depictions, images, likenesses, portraits, representations, caricatures, doodles, illustrations, contours, figures, outlines, silhouettes, cartoons, delineations, drawings, sketches

Related Entry: Line up (verb)

Line up is a different word from Line. The synonyms below are for line up, not for line.

  1. as in order, organize

    similar: arrange, group, order, organize, marshal, mobilize, muster, rally, call (up), convene, summon, activate, collect, round up
    opposite: demob (chiefly British), demobilize, disarrange, disorder, disorganize, disrupt, disturb, deactivate, dismiss, break up, disband, dissolve, split (up)

  2. as in register, align

    similar: align, register, equal, match, parallel, accord, agree, answer, check, chord, cohere, coincide, comport, conform, consist, correspond, dovetail, fit, go, harmonize, jibe, rhyme, sort, square, tally
    opposite: differ (from), disagree (with), contradict, dispute, gainsay, negate, nullify, clash, conflict, jar

Related Entry: Bottom line (noun)

Bottom line is a different word from Line. The synonyms below are for bottom line, not for line.

  1. the central part or aspect of something under consideration

    "why don't we stop talking around it and get to the bottom line"

    similar: bull's-eye, centerpiece, core, crux, essence, gist, heart, kernel, keynote, meat, meat and potatoes, net, nub, nubbin, nucleus, pith, pivot, point, root, sum, sum and substance, the long and short
    related: course, direction, drift, tenor, body, content, substance, hypothesis, proposition, purport, subject, theme, thesis

Related Entry: Bright-line (adjective)

Bright-line is a different word from Line. The synonyms below are for bright-line, not for line.

  1. not subject to misinterpretation or more than one interpretation

    "there is no bright-line rule governing the issue"

    similar: apparent, bald, bald-faced, barefaced, broad, clear, clear-cut, crystal clear, decided, distinct, evident, lucid, luculent, luminous, manifest, nonambiguous, obvious, open-and-shut, palpable, patent, pellucid, perspicuous, plain, ringing, straightforward, transparent, unambiguous, unambivalent, unequivocal, unmistakable
    related: cognizable, cognoscible, comprehendible, comprehensible, digestible, fathomable, graspable, intelligible, knowable, understandable, self-evident, self-explanatory, clean-cut, simple, tidy, uncomplicated, overt, undisguised, appreciable, perceptible, recognizable, sensible, tangible, discernible, noticeable, observable, visible, black-and-white, explicit, trenchant, well-defined, clean, decipherable, fair, legible, readable
    opposite: ambiguous, clouded, cryptic, dark, enigmatic, equivocal, indistinct, mysterious, nonobvious, obfuscated, obscure, unapparent, unclarified, unclear
    near: incomprehensible, indecipherable, unfathomable, unintelligible, unknowable, impalpable, imperceptible, inappreciable, indiscernible, insensible, cloudy, gauzy, gray, hazy, imprecise, indefinite, indeterminate, misty, murky, nebulous, noncommittal, sketchy, slippery, subtle, vague, illegible, undecipherable, unreadable

Related Entry: Down-the-line (adjective)

Down-the-line is a different word from Line. The synonyms below are for down-the-line, not for line.

  1. firm in one's allegiance to someone or something

    "a down-the-line supporter of the Republican Party"

    similar: constant, dedicated, devoted, devout, faithful, fast, good, loyal, pious, staunch, steadfast, steady, true, true-blue
    related: dependable, dutiful, reliable, responsible, solid, tried, tried-and-true, trustworthy, trusty, unfaltering, unhesitating, unwavering, determined, intent, resolute, confirmed, dyed-in-the-wool, inveterate, sworn, ardent, avid, enthusiastic, fervent, fervid, gung ho, impassioned, passionate, serious
    opposite: disloyal, faithless, false, fickle, inconstant, perfidious, recreant, traitorous, treacherous, unfaithful, untrue
    near: irresponsible, undependable, unreliable, untrustworthy, faltering, hesitant, vacillating, wavering, dubious, irresolute, shaky, uncertain, apathetic, dispassionate, uninterested

Related Entry: First-line (adjective)

First-line is a different word from Line. The synonyms below are for first-line, not for line.

  1. singled out from a number or group as more to one's liking

    "surgery is usually not considered a first-line treatment for this type of cancer"

    similar: cherry-picked, choice, chosen, elect, favored, favorite, handpicked, picked, preferred, select, selected, of choice
    related: fashionable, exclusive, culled, picked over, screened, weeded (out), winnowed (out)
    near: average, common, commonplace, ordinary, run-of-the-mill

Related Entry: Front line (noun)

Front line is a different word from Line. The synonyms below are for front line, not for line.

  1. the leading or most important part of a movement

    "Susan B. Anthony was on the front line of the struggle for woman suffrage"

    similar: cutting edge, forefront, leading edge, van, vanguard
    related: spearhead

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Line

The most common words with a similar meaning to Line:

Chiefly British: routeway
Archaic: race
column, cue, file, queue, range, string, train, course, methodology, policy, procedure, program, calling, employment, game, lay, occupation, profession, trade, vocation, work, area, arena, bailiwick, barony, business, circle, demesne, department, discipline, domain, element, fief, fiefdom, field, firmament, front, kingdom, precinct, province

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Line

Words with the opposite meaning of Line:

issue, posterity, progeny, seed, derange, disarrange, disarray, disorder, mess (up), muss (up), rumple, misalign

Related Words for Line

echelon, rank, row, tier, chain, progression, succession, blueprint, design, plan, scheme, strategy, intent, intention, purpose, approach, direction, method, tack, call, lifework, enterprise, livelihood, living, métier, racket, assignment, engagement, gig, mission

Near Antonyms of Line

avocation, hobby, pursuit, ancestry, birth, descent, extraction, origin, pedigree, offspring, child, heir, inheritor, son, successor

Word Forms of Line

Inflections: lined, lining

Derived words: liny (adjective)

Origin & Etymology of Line

Middle English; partly from Anglo-French lingne, from Latin linea, from feminine of lineus made of flax, from linum flax; partly from Old English līne; akin to Old English līn flax linen

First known use: before 12th century

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Line

Words & Phrases Containing Line

line dance, line drawing, line drive, line engraving, line graph, line-haul, line item

Frequently Asked Questions about Line

What does "Line" mean?

"Line" means a length of cord or cord-like material. As an a noun and a verb, it is defined as: a length of cord or cord-like material. It has 13 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Line"?

Other words for "Line" include column, cue, file, queue, range, string, train and course. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Line" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Line"?

There are 303 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Line". Common alternatives include column, cue, file, queue, range, string, train, course, methodology and policy.

What is the opposite of "Line"?

Antonyms of "Line" include issue, posterity, progeny, seed, derange, disarrange, disarray and disorder. Near antonyms include avocation, hobby, pursuit and ancestry.

How do you use "Line" in a sentence?

Examples of "Line" in a sentence: "the line for tickets stretched around the block"; "since the election, the president has taken a very conservative line"; "my line of business is pre-owned vehicles, and have I got a deal for you!".

Is "Line" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Line" can be used as a noun and a verb, depending on the context.

Is "Line" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As an A1-level word, "Line" is typical of Cambridge A1 Movers (Young Learners), TOEIC Listening & Reading 120+.

How do you pronounce "Line"?

"Line" is pronounced /ˈlīn/.