old-line

adjective

ˈōl(d)-ˈlīn 

1

a

: having a reputation or authority based on length or proven quality of service

an old-line firm

b

: of established prestige and influence

old-line families

2

: adhering to traditional policies or practices : conservative

Synonyms of old-line

• traditional
• conservative
• orthodox

Examples of old-line in a Sentence

an old-line professor who still taught as if it were 1930

Recent Examples on the Web

In 2010, Brown was serving on the board of the Historic Wilmington Foundation, an old-line preservation organization. — Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 3 July 2026

Built on a hillside overlooking Vila Nova de Gaia (where most of the old-line port merchants are located) and the Douro River, the luxurious 82-room hotel gets its identity from the local wine trade. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 June 2026

There were old-line Whigs who preferred some sort of compromise, and in the upper South, there were those who thought the Union was indivisible. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 26 May 2026

And for the first time, top Wall Street banks weren’t just attracting WASP or old-line German Jewish men with family ties to banking, the historic mainstays of the finance world. — Literary Hub, 15 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1803, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for old-line

• affine
• airline
• align
• aline
• assign
• baseline
• beamline
• benign
• bloodline
• bovine
• brucine
• byline