picket line

noun

1

: a position held by a line of military pickets

2

: a line of people picketing a business, organization, or institution

Examples of picket line in a Sentence

She joined her coworkers on the picket line.

Recent Examples on the Web

According to their union, the school hired temporary contractors to cross the picket line and do the strikers' work. —Cbs Chicago Team, CBS News, 22 Apr. 2026

Hundreds of members of a local machinists union arrived on the picket line before sunrise Monday demanding their company, Olin Winchester, return to the bargaining table. —Laura Bauer, Kansas City Star, 20 Apr. 2026

After two months on the picket lines, the 115-member bargaining unit held a vote Friday about whether to stay on strike or approach guild management about essentially accepting their March 11 proposal. —Katie Campione, Deadline, 17 Apr. 2026

In a particularly infamous incident, early in the strike, Art Babbitt started jeering when Walt drove across the picket line. —Literary Hub, 14 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1847, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for picket line

• acridine
• alkaline
• andesine
• anodyne
• anticline
• arginine
• asinine
• atropine
• benzidine
• borderline
• byzantine
• calamine

Kids Definition

picket line

noun

1

: a position held by a line of military pickets

2

: a line of individuals (as striking workers or protestors) who are demonstrating against a business, organization, or institution

Legal Definition

picket line

noun

: a line of people picketing a business, institution, or organization