party line

[ pahr-tee lahyn for 1, 2; pahr-tee lahyn for 3, 4 ]
See synonyms for party line on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the authorized, prescribed policies and practices of a group, especially of the Communist Party, usually followed by the members without deviation; official philosophy or credo.

  2. the guiding policy, tenets, or practices of a political party: The judge was chosen on party lines.

  1. a telephone line connecting the telephones of a number of subscribers by one circuit to a central office, used in some rural areas.

  2. the boundary line separating adjoining properties.

Origin of party line

1
An Americanism dating back to 1825–35

Other words from party line

  • party-line, adjective

Words Nearby party line

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use party line in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for party line

party line

noun
  1. a telephone line serving two or more subscribers

  2. the policies or dogma of a political party, to which all members are expected to subscribe

  1. mainly US the boundary between adjoining property

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with party line

party line

The official policy of an organization or government, as in The current party line opposes legalized abortion in all cases. This term, dating from about 1830, was originally used for a political party's official policy but in the mid-1900s was almost exclusively applied to the rigid dicta of the Soviet Communist Party. Since then it has returned to looser use.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.