through line

noun

variants or throughline

ˈthrü-ˌlīn 

or less commonly through-line

: a common or consistent element or theme shared by items in a series or by parts of a whole

But Kent's latest nonetheless reveals a fascinating through line in her work, which centers on, as she puts it, "disrespect for the feminine"—and the inciting power of female rage.

—Rachel Handler

Vang was born in a refugee camp in Thailand, and came to the United States in the late 1980s. For him and his family, food was the throughline keeping them connected to their culture, wherever they were.

—Sharyn Jackson

Perverse moments like these are a throughline in Decker's work. The Texas native specializes in "bad" desires—awkward wants that tend to go unexpressed, or which otherwise seem too compromising to confess even to oneself.

—K. Austin Collins

Unlike Tokyo's great shopping thoroughfares, which have a certain logical through-line (if not aesthetic, at least socioeconomic), Osaka's arcades are mismatched, high-low jumbles of retail diversions.

—Simon Dumenco

Examples of through line in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The somewhat chronological organization of the show reveals formal and aesthetic through lines that emerged and were refined over time. — Adrian Madlener, Curbed, 2 Nov. 2026

By Will Sabel Courtney Aston Martin Aston Martin’s century-plus of existence has seen the British automaker’s fate controlled by a wide range of owners and partners, but some through lines have always been there. — Will Sabel Courtney, Robb Report, 30 Oct. 2026

Color — specifically the book’s classic red and blue — serves as the through line between characters and their growing or thinning emotional connections. — Abbey White, HollywoodReporter, 29 Oct. 2026

The Hodsons are from the United Kingdom, and with rooms like Surrey, Devon, Cornwall, and Nottingham, there’s a clear through line to their homeland. — Heather Bien, Southern Living, 28 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1936, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for through line

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