chalk line

noun Building Trades.

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.

Origin of chalk line

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for chalk line

All her life she had walked her chalk-line, and anything outside savoured of the mysterious, and terrible.
The Butterfly House|Mary E. Wilkins Freeman
The chalk-line is a chalked cord drawn taut between the two points to be connected.
Woodworking for Beginners|Charles Gardner Wheeler
Lancelot ruefully recognised the truth of the chalk-line story.
The Unbearable Bassington|Saki
She hain't never said the word, nor she hain't plumb pitched me out, either, but she makes me walk a chalk-line.
Dixie Hart|Will N. Harben

There were not even employees to see and blackmail them if they failed to walk the chalk-line.
Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Volume 11 (of 14)|Elbert Hubbard