front line
Americannoun
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front lines
plural
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Military. front.
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the place where in-person essential work is carried out, especially in jobs that may involve some risk, as in policing, healthcare, emergency services, public transit, grocery, warehouse, and delivery work.
Our bookstore extends a discount to all the teachers, aides, specialists, librarians, and therapists who are on the front line serving our children in schools every day.
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the visible forefront in any action, activity, or field.
TV reporters are constantly involved in the front line of events.
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Football. front four.
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Basketball. front court.
noun
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military the most advanced military units or elements in a battle
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the most advanced, exposed, or conspicuous element in any activity or situation
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frontline. (modifier)
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of, relating to, or suitable for the front line of a military formation
frontline troops
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of, relating to, or suitable for public service and business employees who are in direct contact with the public
frontline staff
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to the fore; advanced, conspicuous, etc
frontline news
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of or relating to a country bordering on or close to a hostile country or scene of armed conflict
leaders of the frontline states attended the summit
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Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of front line
First recorded in 1670–80
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.
Vo said his decades on the front line in law enforcement taught him “what hard working families actually deal with.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
Ministers said it would simplify administration and reduce duplication so that more resources could be directed to front line treatment as well as delivering more consistency in care across the country.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
At the closest checkpoint to the front line, we met some fighters who had just returned from positions high on the mountain, just a few hundred metres from advancing Houthis.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
The Unmanned Systems Forces and other parts of the Ukrainian military are putting battlefield information to use for research and development, linking weapons makers with the front line.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026
As we crossed the front line, I saw the Germans sitting close to each other, miserably looking up at the sky.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
