white line

noun

|Updated on: 24 Jun 2018

Definition of white line

: a band or edge of something white; especially : a stripe painted on a road and used to guide traffic

Recent Examples of white line from the Web

When a passing car’s front tire touched one painted white line, Rothman quickly hit a toggle switch.

— michaelle bond, Philly.com, "In Pa., local cops can't use radar to catch speeders. That could soon change," 18 June 2018
Ronaldo has turned flashiness into an art form, inside and outside the white lines of the soccer field.

— martin rogers, USA TODAY, "Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo? Be careful how you answer," 14 June 2018
The stripes on a school uniform necktie are the same quick white lines that define the edge of the student’s sweater and the pattern of her jacket in a scene composed like a yearbook’s class picture..

— christopher knight, latimes.com, "The art of daily existence: Meleko Mokgosi's provocative show at the UCLA Fowler Museum," 7 May 2018
The Iroquois documented the border on their wampum as a white line between two black ones.

— porter fox, Outside Online, "Exploring America's Forgotten Border," 1 June 2018
The third wore black and white shoes; a blue sweatshirt with white lines on it, a baseball cap and gloves.

— teri figueroa, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Crew of thieves steal $35K in coins, silver in Vista heist," 10 May 2018
Flashes of colour light up the shirt, with dazzling horizontal red and white lines vibrantly standing out against the famous Chelsea blue.

— SI.com, "Chelsea Land £50m Five-Year Deal With Car Manufacturer for New Sleeve Sponsorship," 12 May 2018
These days, the most challenging driving environments require self-driving cars to make guidance decisions without white lines, Botts Dots, or clear demarcations at the edge of the road.

— andrew j. hawkins, The Verge, "Inside Waymo’s strategy to grow the best brains for self-driving cars," 9 May 2018
The unidentified man, dressed in a black jacket, black gloves, black pants, and black shoes, had on a green head cover and a black mask with white lines, FBI spokeswoman Jill McCabe said.

— chris mccrory, azcentral, "FBI: Man in Black Panther-like mask robbed Phoenix bank, fled on scooter," 30 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'white line.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of white line

15th century

in the meaning defined above

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