frontline

American  

[fruhnt-lahyn] / ˈfrʌntˌlaɪn /

Or front-line

adjective

1. located or designed to be used at a military front line.

   a frontline ambulance helicopter.

2. of, relating to, or involving the forefront in any action, activity, or field.

   a frontline TV reporter.

3. highly experienced or proficient in the performance of one's duties.

4. of or relating to essential work that depends on in-person interactions and may involve some risk, especially policing, healthcare, emergency services, public transit, grocery, warehouse, and delivery work.

   Congress is taking up a bill that would guarantee sick leave and hazard pay to frontline workers.

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Etymology

Origin of frontline

First recorded in 1910–15; front (in the military sense) + line ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

frontline

For Pacific nations, hosting the preliminary talks in their region offers an opportunity to draw the world's attention to life on the frontline of climate change.

From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026

That pattern has been repeated across much of the frontline in Ukraine where local organisations have worked with international groups to try to safeguard their national heritage from Russian attack.

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

"My job was a huge part of my identity. I'm unsure of what the future holds for me, and I fear that I will never be able to return to frontline policing."

From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026

In some frontline Ukrainian cities, nets are hung high and wide across long stretches of road, forming corridors like spiders' webs to thwart aerial attacks.

From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026

Out beyond the frontline trenches, no man’s land separating the opposing armies might be anywhere from a mile or more across to barely twenty-five yards wide.

From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman