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. □ [+ of ] 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. □ He'd said something along those lines already. □ Our forecast 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. □ …so-called autonomous republics based on ethnic lines. □ …reorganising old factories to work along Japanese lines.
21 N‑COUNT Your line of business or work is the kind of work that you do. [BUSINESS ] □ [+ of ] So what was your father's line of business? □ [+ of ] 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 [usu sing] You can use line when you are referring to a number of people who are ranked according to status. □ [+ of ] Nicholas Paul Patrick was seventh in the line of succession to the throne. □ [+ for ] …the man who stands next in line for the presidency.
25 N‑COUNT [usu sing] A particular line of 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. □ [+ of ] We were part of a long line of artists. □ [+ of ] 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. □ [V n] Thousands of local people lined the streets and clapped as the procession went by. □ [V -ed] …a square lined with pubs and clubs. ● -lined COMB □ …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. □ [V n] Scoop the blanket weed out and use it to line hanging baskets. □ [V n + with ] Female bears tend to line their dens with leaves or grass. ● -lined COMB □ …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. □ [V n] …the muscles that line the intestines.
29 → see also bottom line , branch line , dividing line , front line , lined , lining , party line , picket line , yellow line
30 PHRASE If you draw the line at a particular activity, you refuse to do it, because you disapprove of it or because it is more extreme than what you normally do. □ [+ at ] I will eat pretty much anything, but I draw the line at insects.
31 PHRASE If you draw a line between two things, you make a distinction between them. □ It is, however, not possible to draw a distinct line between the two categories.
32 PHRASE 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. □ More than 3,000 police officers were wounded in the line of duty last year.
33 PHRASE 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. □ Passport checks will remain the first line of defence against terrorists.
34 PHRASE If you are in line for something, it is likely to happen to you or you are likely to obtain it. If something is in line to happen, it is likely to happen. □ [+ for ] 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 PHRASE If one object is in line with others, or moves into line with others, they are arranged in a line. You can also say that a number of objects are in line or move into line . □ [+ with ] 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 PHRASE If one thing is in line with another, or is brought into line with it, the first thing is, or becomes, similar to the second, especially in a way that has been planned or expected. □ [+ with ] The structure of our schools is now broadly in line with the major countries of the world. □ [+ with ] This brings the law into line with most medical opinion.
37 PHRASE When people stand in line or wait in line , they stand one behind the other in a line, waiting their turn for something. [AM ] □ I had been standing in line for three hours. in BRIT, use queue
38 PHRASE 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. □ All this was just designed to frighten me and keep me in line. □ …if the Prime Minister fails to bring rebellious Tories into line.