fall in line

1. Also, fall into line. Adhere to established rules or predetermined courses of action. For example, This idea falls in line with the entire agenda, or It wasn't easy to get all the tenants to fall into line concerning the rent hike. A related term is bring into line, meaning “to make someone fit established rules,” as in It was her job to bring her class into line with the others. These terms employ line in the sense of “alignment,” a usage dating from about 1500.

Example Sentences

“But he always fell in line whenever Asase got tough on him. So get tough on him!”

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“Washington politicians like Adam Gray have fallen in line with a failed liberal agenda that’s made life less affordable and less safe,” Lincoln said in a statement.

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Others fall in line with Beijing's strategic objectives, set out a decade ago in a major government initiative called Made in China 2025.

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Finally, rubble and tools were loaded into the trucks, and the robots fell in line.

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Otherwise, the Beige Book seemed to largely fall in line with the view of the economy that Fed Chair Jerome Powell outlined on Tuesday —i.e. not much has changed from September.

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