Letter vs. Line

Letternoun

A symbol in an alphabet.

‘There are twenty-six letters in the English alphabet.’;

Linenoun

A path through two or more points (compare ‘segment’); a continuous mark, including as made by a pen; any path, curved or straight.

‘The arrow descended in a curved line.’;

Letternoun

A written or printed communication, generally longer and more formal than a note.

‘I wrote a letter to my sister about my life.’;

Linenoun

(geometry) An infinitely extending one-dimensional figure that has no curvature; one that has length but not breadth or thickness.

Letternoun

The literal meaning of something, as distinguished from its intended and remoter meaning (often contrasted with the spirit).

Linenoun

A line segment; a continuous finite segment of such a figure.

Letternoun

Literature.

‘Benjamin Franklin was multiskilled – a scientist, politician and a man of letters.’;

Linenoun

(graph theory) An edge of a graph.

Letternoun

(law) A division unit of a piece of law marked by a letter of the alphabet.

‘Letter (b) constitutes an exception to this provision.’;

Linenoun

(geography) A circle of latitude or of longitude, as represented on a map.

Letternoun

A size of paper, 8½ in × 11 in (215.9 mm × 279.4 mm, US paper sizes rounded to the nearest 5 mm).

Linenoun

The equator.

Letternoun

A size of paper, 215 mm × 280 mm.

Linenoun

(music) One of the straight horizontal and parallel prolonged strokes on and between which the notes are placed.

Letternoun

clipping of varsity letter

Linenoun

(cricket) The horizontal path of a ball towards the batsman (see also length).

Letternoun

A single type; type, collectively; a style of type.

Linenoun

(soccer) The goal line.

Letternoun

One who lets, or lets out.

‘the letter of a room’; ‘a blood-letter’;

Linenoun

A rope, cord, string, or thread, of any thickness.

Letternoun

(archaic) One who retards or hinders.

Linenoun

A hose or pipe, of any size.

‘a brake line, the main water line to the house,’;

Letterverb

(transitive) To print, inscribe, or paint letters on something.

Linenoun

Direction, path.

‘the line of sight;’; ‘the line of vision’;

Letterverb

To earn a varsity letter (award).

Linenoun

The wire connecting one telegraphic station with another, a telephone or internet cable between two points: a telephone or network connection.

‘I tried to make a call, but the line was dead.’; ‘a dedicated line;’; ‘a shared line’; ‘Please speak up, the line is very faint.’;

Letternoun

One who lets or permits; one who lets anything for hire.

Linenoun

A clothesline.

Letternoun

One who retards or hinders.

Linenoun

A letter, a written form of communication.

‘Drop me a line.’;

Letternoun

A mark or character used as the representative of a sound, or of an articulation of the human organs of speech; a first element of written language.

‘And a superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew.’;

Linenoun

A connected series of public conveyances, as a roadbed or railway track; and hence, an established arrangement for forwarding merchandise, etc.

‘a line of stages;’; ‘an express line’;

Letternoun

A written or printed communication; a message expressed in intelligible characters on something adapted to conveyance, as paper, parchment, etc.; an epistle.

‘The style of letters ought to be free, easy, and natural.’;

Linenoun

(military) A trench or rampart, or the non-physical demarcation of the extent of the territory occupied by specified forces.

Letternoun

A writing; an inscription.

‘None could expound what this letter meant.’;

Linenoun

The exterior limit of a figure or territory: a boundary, contour, or outline; a demarcation.

Letternoun

Verbal expression; literal statement or meaning; exact signification or requirement.

‘We must observe the letter of the law, without doing violence to the reason of the law and the intention of the lawgiver.’; ‘I broke the letter of it to keep the sense.’;

Linenoun

A long tape or ribbon marked with units for measuring; a tape measure.

Letternoun

A single type; type, collectively; a style of type.

‘Under these buildings . . . was the king's printing house, and that famous letter so much esteemed.’;

Linenoun

(obsolete) A measuring line or cord.

Letternoun

Learning; erudition; as, a man of letters.

Linenoun

That which was measured by a line, such as a field or any piece of land set apart; hence, allotted place of abode.

Letternoun

A letter; an epistle.

Linenoun

A threadlike crease or wrinkle marking the face, hand, or body; hence, a characteristic mark.

Letternoun

A telegram longer than an ordinary message sent at rates lower than the standard message rate in consideration of its being sent and delivered subject to priority in service of regular messages. Such telegrams are called by the Western Union Company day letters, or night letters according to the time of sending, and by The Postal Telegraph Company day lettergrams, or night lettergrams.

‘A strange lock that opens with AMEN.’;

Linenoun

Lineament; feature; figure (of one's body).

Letterverb

To impress with letters; to mark with letters or words; as, a book gilt and lettered.

Linenoun

A more-or-less straight sequence of people, objects, etc., either arranged as a queue or column and often waiting to be processed or dealt with, or arranged abreast of one another in a row (and contrasted with a column), as in a military formation.

‘The line forms on the right.’; ‘There is a line of houses.’;

Letternoun

a written message addressed to a person or organization;

‘mailed an indignant letter to the editor’;

Linenoun

(military) The regular infantry of an army, as distinguished from militia, guards, volunteer corps, cavalry, artillery, etc.

Letternoun

the conventional characters of the alphabet used to represent speech;

‘his grandmother taught him his letters’;

Linenoun

A series or succession of ancestors or descendants of a given person; a family or race; compare lineage.

Letternoun

a strictly literal interpretation (as distinct from the intention);

‘he followed instructions to the letter’; ‘he obeyed the letter of the law’;

Linenoun

A small amount of text. Specifically:

Letternoun

an award earned by participation in a school sport;

‘he won letters in three sports’;

Linenoun

A written or printed row of letters, words, numbers, or other text, especially a row of words extending across a page or column, or a blank in place of such text.

‘The answer to the comprehension question can be found in the third line of the accompanying text.’;

Letternoun

owner who lets another person use something (housing usually) for hire

Linenoun

A verse (in poetry).

Letterverb

win an athletic letter

Linenoun

A sentence of dialogue, especially in a play, movie, or the like.

‘He was perfecting his pickup lines for use at the bar.’; ‘"It is what it is" was one his more annoying lines.’;

Letterverb

set down or print with letters

Linenoun

A lie or exaggeration, especially one told to gain another's approval or prevent losing it.

‘Don't feed me a line!’;

Letterverb

mark letters on or mark with letters

Linenoun

Course of conduct, thought, occupation, or policy; method of argument; department of industry, trade, or intellectual activity.

Letternoun

a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech; any of the symbols of an alphabet

‘a capital letter’;

Linenoun

The official, stated position (or set of positions) of an individual or group, particularly a political or religious faction.

‘Remember, your answers must match the party line.’;

Letternoun

the initials of a degree or other qualification

‘your personality matters far more than letters after your name’;

Linenoun

A set of products or services sold by a business, or by extension, the business itself.

‘line of business, product line’; ‘How many buses does the line have?’; ‘The airline is in danger of bankruptcy.’;

Letternoun

a school or college initial as a mark of proficiency, especially in sport

‘a letter jacket’;

Linenoun

(stock exchange) A number of shares taken by a jobber.

Letternoun

a written, typed, or printed communication, sent in an envelope by post or messenger

‘he sent a letter to Mrs Falconer’;

Linenoun

A measure of length:

Letternoun

a legal or formal document.

Linenoun

(historical) A tsarist-era Russian unit of measure, approximately equal to one tenth of an English inch, used especially when measuring the calibre of firearms.

Letternoun

the precise terms of a statement or requirement; the strict verbal interpretation

‘we must keep the spirit of the law as well as the letter’; ‘the officer in the incident got in trouble for following the letter of the law’;

Linenoun

One twelfth of an inch.

Letternoun

literature

‘the world of letters’;

Linenoun

One fortieth of an inch.

Letternoun

scholarly knowledge; erudition.

Linenoun

(historical) A maxwell, a unit of magnetic flux.

Letternoun

a style of typeface.

Linenoun

The batter’s box.

Letterverb

inscribe letters or writing on

‘her name was lettered in gold’;

Linenoun

The position in which the fencers hold their swords.

Letterverb

classify with letters

‘he numbered and lettered the paragraphs’;

Linenoun

(engineering) Proper relative position or adjustment (of parts, not as to design or proportion, but with reference to smooth working).

‘the engine is in line / out of line’;

Letterverb

be given a school or college initial as a mark of proficiency in sport

‘in high school she lettered in soccer, basketball and softball’;

Linenoun

A small portion or serving (of a powdery illegal drug).

Linenoun

(obsolete) Instruction; doctrine.

Linenoun

(genetics) Population of cells derived from a single cell and containing the same genetic makeup.

Linenoun

(perfusion line) a set composed of a spike, a drip chamber, a clamp, a Y-injection site, a three-way stopcock and a catheter.

Linenoun

(ice hockey) A group of forwards that play together.

Linenoun

A vascular catheter.

‘patient had a line inserted’; ‘line' sepsis’;

Linenoun

(obsolete) Flax; linen, particularly the longer fiber of flax.

Lineverb

(transitive) To place (objects) into a line (usually used with "up"); to form into a line; to align.

‘to line troops’; ‘some more, please’;

Lineverb

(transitive) To place persons or things along the side of for security or defense; to strengthen by adding; to fortify.

‘to line works with soldiers’;

Lineverb

To form a line along.

Lineverb

(transitive) To mark with a line or lines, to cover with lines.

‘to line a copy book’;

Lineverb

To represent by lines; to delineate; to portray.

Lineverb

(transitive) To read or repeat line by line.

‘to line out a hymn’;

Lineverb

To form or enter into a line.

Lineverb

To hit a line drive; to hit a line drive which is caught for an out. Compare fly and ground.

‘Jones lined to left in his last at-bat.’;

Lineverb

To track (wild bees) to their nest by following their line of flight.

Lineverb

(transitive) To cover the inner surface of (something), originally especially with linen.

‘The bird lines its nest with soft grass.’; ‘to line a cloak with silk or fur’; ‘to line a box with paper or tin’; ‘paintings lined the walls of the cavernous dining room’;

Lineverb

To reinforce (the back of a book) with glue and glued scrap material such as fabric or paper.

Lineverb

(transitive) To fill or supply (something), as a purse with money.

‘to line the shelves’;

Lineverb

to copulate with, to impregnate.

Linenoun

Flax; linen.

Linenoun

The longer and finer fiber of flax.

Linenoun

A linen thread or string; a slender, strong cord; also, a cord of any thickness; a rope; a hawser; as, a fishing line; a line for snaring birds; a clothesline; a towline.

‘Who so layeth lines for to latch fowls.’;

Linenoun

A more or less threadlike mark of pen, pencil, or graver; any long mark; as, a chalk line.

Linenoun

The course followed by anything in motion; hence, a road or route; as, the arrow descended in a curved line; the place is remote from lines of travel.

Linenoun

Direction; as, the line of sight or vision.

Linenoun

A row of letters, words, etc., written or printed; esp., a row of words extending across a page or column.

Linenoun

A short letter; a note; as, a line from a friend.

Linenoun

A verse, or the words which form a certain number of feet, according to the measure.

‘In the preceding line Ulysses speaks of Nausicaa.’;

Linenoun

Course of conduct, thought, occupation, or policy; method of argument; department of industry, trade, or intellectual activity.

‘He is uncommonly powerful in his own line, but it is not the line of a first-rate man.’;

Linenoun

That which has length, but not breadth or thickness.

Linenoun

The exterior limit of a figure, plat, or territory; boundary; contour; outline.

‘Eden stretched her lineFrom Auran eastward to the royal towersOf great Seleucia.’;

Linenoun

A threadlike crease marking the face or the hand; hence, characteristic mark.

‘Though on his brow were graven lines austere.’; ‘He tipples palmistry, and dinesOn all her fortune-telling lines.’;

Linenoun

Lineament; feature; figure.

Linenoun

A straight row; a continued series or rank; as, a line of houses, or of soldiers; a line of barriers.

‘Unite thy forces and attack their lines.’;

Linenoun

A series or succession of ancestors or descendants of a given person; a family or race; as, the ascending or descending line; the line of descent; the male line; a line of kings.

‘Of his lineage am I, and his offspringBy very line, as of the stock real.’;

Linenoun

A connected series of public conveyances, and hence, an established arrangement for forwarding merchandise, etc.; as, a line of stages; an express line.

Linenoun

A circle of latitude or of longitude, as represented on a map.

Linenoun

A long tape, or a narrow ribbon of steel, etc., marked with subdivisions, as feet and inches, for measuring; a tapeline.

Linenoun

A measuring line or cord.

‘He marketh it out with a line.’;

Linenoun

That which was measured by a line, as a field or any piece of land set apart; hence, allotted place of abode.

‘The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.’;

Linenoun

The proper relative position or adjustment of parts, not as to design or proportion, but with reference to smooth working; as, the engine is in line or out of line.

Linenoun

Instruction; doctrine.

‘Their line is gone out through all the earth.’;

Linenoun

The track and roadbed of a railway; railroad.

Linenoun

A row of men who are abreast of one another, whether side by side or some distance apart; - opposed to column.

Linenoun

A trench or rampart.

Linenoun

Form of a vessel as shown by the outlines of vertical, horizontal, and oblique sections.

Linenoun

One of the straight horizontal and parallel prolonged strokes on and between which the notes are placed.

Linenoun

A number of shares taken by a jobber.

Linenoun

A series of various qualities and values of the same general class of articles; as, a full line of hosiery; a line of merinos, etc.

Linenoun

The wire connecting one telegraphic station with another, or the whole of a system of telegraph wires under one management and name.

Linenoun

The reins with which a horse is guided by his driver.

Linenoun

A measure of length; one twelfth of an inch.

Lineverb

To cover the inner surface of; as, to line a cloak with silk or fur; to line a box with paper or tin.

‘The inside lined with rich carnation silk.’;

Lineverb

To put something in the inside of; to fill; to supply, as a purse with money.

‘The charge amounteth very high for any one man's purse, except lined beyond ordinary, to reach unto.’; ‘Till coffee has her stomach lined.’;

Lineverb

To place persons or things along the side of for security or defense; to strengthen by adding anything; to fortify; as, to line works with soldiers.

‘Line and new repair our towns of warWith men of courage and with means defendant.’;

Lineverb

To impregnate; - applied to brute animals.

Lineverb

To mark with a line or lines; to cover with lines; as, to line a copy book.

‘He had a healthy color in his cheeks, and his face, though lined, bore few traces of anxiety.’;

Lineverb

To represent by lines; to delineate; to portray.

Lineverb

To read or repeat line by line; as, to line out a hymn.

‘This custom of reading or lining, or, as it was frequently called "deaconing" the hymn or psalm in the churches, was brought about partly from necessity.’;

Lineverb

To form into a line; to align; as, to line troops.

Linenoun

a formation of people or things one beside another;

‘the line of soldiers advanced with their bayonets fixed’; ‘they were arrayed in line of battle’; ‘the cast stood in line for the curtain call’;

Linenoun

a mark that is long relative to its width;

‘He drew a line on the chart’; ‘The substance produced characteristic lines on the spectroscope’;

Linenoun

a formation of people or things one behind another;

‘the line stretched clear around the corner’; ‘you must wait in a long line at the checkout counter’;

Linenoun

a length (straight or curved) without breadth or thickness; the trace of a moving point

Linenoun

text consisting of a row of words written across a page or computer screen;

‘the letter consisted of three short lines’; ‘there are six lines in every stanza’;

Linenoun

a single frequency (or very narrow band) of radiation in a spectrum

Linenoun

a fortified position (especially one marking the most forward position of troops);

‘they attacked the enemy's line’;

Linenoun

the methodical process of logical reasoning;

‘I can't follow your line of reasoning’;

Linenoun

a conductor for transmitting electrical or optical signals or electric power

Linenoun

a connected series of events or actions or developments;

‘the government took a firm course’; ‘historians can only point out those lines for which evidence is available’;

Linenoun

a spatial location defined by a real or imaginary unidimensional extent

Linenoun

a slight depression in the smoothness of a surface;

‘his face has many lines’; ‘ironing gets rid of most wrinkles’;

Linenoun

a pipe used to transport liquids or gases;

‘a pipeline runs from the wells to the seaport’;

Linenoun

the road consisting of railroad track and roadbed

Linenoun

a telephone connection

Linenoun

acting in conformity;

‘in line with’; ‘he got out of line’; ‘toe the line’;

Linenoun

the descendants of one individual;

‘his entire lineage has been warriors’;

Linenoun

something (as a cord or rope) that is long and thin and flexible;

‘a washing line’;

Linenoun

the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money;

‘he's not in my line of business’;

Linenoun

in games or sports; a mark indicating positions or bounds of the playing area

Linenoun

(often plural) a means of communication or access;

‘it must go through official channels’; ‘lines of communication were set up between the two firms’;

Linenoun

a particular kind of product or merchandise;

‘a nice line of shoes’;

Linenoun

a commercial organization serving as a common carrier

Linenoun

space for one line of print (one column wide and 1/14 inch deep) used to measure advertising

Linenoun

the maximum credit that a customer is allowed

Linenoun

a succession of notes forming a distinctive sequence;

‘she was humming an air from Beethoven’;

Linenoun

a short personal letter;

‘drop me a line when you get there’;

Linenoun

a conceptual separation or demarcation;

‘there is a narrow line between sanity and insanity’;

Linenoun

mechanical system in a factory whereby an article is conveyed through sites at which successive operations are performed on it

Lineverb

be in line with; form a line along;

‘trees line the riverbank’;

Lineverb

cover the interior of (garments);

‘line the gloves’;

Lineverb

make a mark or lines on a surface;

‘draw a line’; ‘trace the outline of a figure in the sand’;

Lineverb

mark with lines;

‘sorrow had lined his face’;

Lineverb

fill plentifully;

‘line one's pockets’;

Lineverb

reinforce with fabric;

‘lined books are more enduring’;