top-line

1 of 2

adjective

1
a
: most featured or prominently advertised : leading
… its oldest top-line act, the Rolling Stones, has long been taken as a symbol of the excesses of rock's nightmare side.Ethan Mordden
b
: of the highest quality, level, or degree : top-of-the-line
The lauded ladies received top-line Southern hospitality …Tim Allis
The new chips may well make moderately priced workhorse computers—the type many people buy—perform more like today's top-line models.Consumer Reports
2
business : relating to or concerned with gross sales or revenue
For real value creation, the merged company has to produce top-line growth and better margins through superior offerings to customers.Geoffrey Colvin

top line

2 of 2

noun

variants or less commonly topline
plural top lines also toplines
1
business : the line at the top of a financial report that shows gross sales or revenue before the deduction of expenses or losses
The top line is weak, with a meager 0.3% sales gain last year, to $669 million, which doesn't even keep up with inflation.Jack Gage
When I first started writing about business, earnings stories focused on two numbers: sales (the top line on a company's income statement) and net income (the bottom line, after deducting all expenses including taxes).Kathleen Pender
compare bottom line sense 2a
2
usually topline : the outline of the top of the body of an animal (such as a dog or horse)
A long-legged, long-moving individual with long topline is considered the optimum type for the horse show.Linda Connors

Examples of top-line in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Adjective
The Maple Leafs head coach was being asked about the status of his top-line left-winger Matthew Knies. Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 17 May 2025 This might be because the third-country deals are intended, above all, to juice top-line deportation numbers. Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 16 May 2025 Although Alibaba continues to reward its shareholders, buying back $11.9 billion worth of shares in the past year, directing capital toward shareholders and away from investments in technology for growth may have dented its top-line growth. Brendan Ahern, Forbes.com, 16 May 2025 That is enough power to support 2.5 million of Nvidia's top-line B200 chips. Amir Daftari, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for top-line

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1880, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1869, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of top-line was in 1869

Browse Nearby Words

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Top-line.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/top-line. Accessed 20 May. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!