guideline

American  

[gahyd-lahyn] / ˈgaɪdˌlaɪn /

noun

• guidelines
  plural

1. any guide or indication of a future course of action.

   guidelines on the government's future policy.

2. a lightly marked line used as a guide, as in composing a drawing, a typed page, or a line of lettering.

3. a rope or cord that serves to guide one's steps, especially over rocky terrain, through underground passages, etc.

4. a rope or wire used in guiding the movement of stage scenery or curtains being raised or lowered.

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guideline British  

/ ˈɡaɪdˌlaɪn /

noun

1. a principle put forward to set standards or determine a course of action

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• guidelines
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of guideline

An Americanism dating back to 1775–85; guide + line ¹

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Explanation

A guideline is a rule-of-thumb or suggestion that shows or tells you how to behave. If you want to stay healthy, you might want to follow the government's dietary guidelines. Sample guideline: go easy on the salt. In the 18th century, guideline referred to an actual line that you drew on fabric before cutting. So for example, if you wanted to cut a piece of linen to make a dress, you'd draw a guideline on it first to make sure the incision would be straight. The line guided your cut; over time, the word became a metaphor for a guide to any sort of action.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

guideline guidelines

"The guideline provides physicians, pharmacists, and regulatory authorities with a common framework for safely and responsibly incorporating phage therapy into clinical practice," says PD Dr. Würstle, the corresponding author of the guideline.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 5, 2026

That should be a fairly good guideline for what direction the next two years could possibly be.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026

He sometimes uses his watch as a guideline when running, but no longer "obsesses over it", adding that he "goes by how I feel on the day".

From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2026

How much credence a court gives to both the guideline range versus the commentary details matters a lot in a case like Beiard’s, as it can mean the difference of years worth of prison time.

From Slate ● Oct. 18, 2026

It’s an aspect of the art of writing which depends on intuition, experience, and guesswork, but there is also an overarching guideline.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

The new guidelines recommend that men aged 50 to 69 receive a prostate-specific antigen blood test every two years.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 12, 2026

A TikTok spokesperson pointed AFP to its community guidelines, which prohibits creators from sharing content that violate another user's intellectual property rights.

From Barron's ● Nov. 11, 2026

Start heating your kettle and brush up on the International Organization for Standardization’s guidelines.

From Slate ● Nov. 9, 2026

By the time it reports second-quarter 2027 earnings, Goldman estimates, SpaceX will be able to meet the S&P 500’s guidelines for profitability and amount of time on the public market.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 9, 2026

Some federal judges, including conservative judges, have quit in protest of federal drug laws and sentencing guidelines.

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

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Related Words

• code
• ground rule
• guidance
• instruction
• protocol
• rule

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