chalk line
Americannoun
-
a chalked string for making a straight line on a large surface, as a wall, by holding the string taut against the surface and snapping it to transfer the chalk.
-
the line so made.
Etymology
Origin of chalk line
late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Position the edge of the bottom plate on this chalk line along its entire edge.
From Seattle Times • Dec. 12, 2022
“It’s not like, you know, today they snapped a chalk line and all of a sudden there’s a massive change in the daily operations of our men and women over there.”
From Washington Times • Dec. 9, 2021
The thing to do is snap a chalk line and cut out the dip.
From Washington Post • Jun. 30, 2020
It was 69 years ago—on April 15, 1947—that Robinson crossed the third base chalk line at Brooklyn’s Ebbet’s Field to become the first African American to play in the Major Leagues.
From Time • Apr. 15, 2016
He was speaking, his face down as if addressing the white chalk line, which now looked yellow.
From "Purple Hibiscus" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
