lineament

noun

lin·​e·​a·​ment ˈli-nē-ə-mənt How to pronounce lineament (audio)
1
a
: an outline, feature, or contour of a body or figure and especially of a face
usually used in plural
b
: a linear topographic feature (as of the earth) that reveals a characteristic (such as a fault or the subsurface structure)
2
: a distinguishing or characteristic feature
usually used in plural
lineamental adjective

Examples of lineament in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The drill target is located at a regional significant NNW lineament that controls the emplacement of the giant Chuquicamata deposit. Sacramento Bee, 2 July 2024 While the fundamentals of the South African situation remain largely unchanged, its outward lineaments are shifting swiftly. Jennifer Seymour Whitaker, Foreign Affairs, 10 June 2024 The drill target is located at a regional significant NNW lineament that controls the emplacement of the giant Chuquicamata deposit (Figure 10). Kansas City Star, 4 June 2024 Will Arbery’s play about a group of young religious conservatives fearlessly delved into the right-wing battle zone of white identity in a Rogue Machine production directed by Guillermo Cienfuegos that gave hard-right ideology a human face and recognizable psychological lineaments. Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 4 Dec. 2023 Hamilton originally performed the painstaking process for her installation lineament (1993) and recreated it a year later to publish (lineament · book/ball) as an edition. Natasha Gural, Forbes, 5 Oct. 2022 An important interplay under Vatnajökull is between the glacier itself and the rock below - with all the fissures and crustal lineament, the weight of the glacier can potentially cause some seismicity. Erik Klemetti, Discover Magazine, 19 Jan. 2011 In geology, lineament refers to a linear feature on the earth's surface, such as a fault, while literary usage refers to a distinctive facial feature or characteristic. Natasha Gural, Forbes, 5 Oct. 2022 Jeff and Russell, whose character is more layered, deserve a few more realistic lineaments. Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2019

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lineament.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin lineamentum, from lineare to draw a line, from linea

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of lineament was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near lineament

Cite this Entry

“Lineament.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lineament. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

lineament

noun
lin·​ea·​ment
ˈlin-ē-ə-mənt
: an outline or contour of a body or figure and especially of the face

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