landline

[ land-lahyn ]

/ ˈlændˌlaɪn /

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noun

a circuit of wire or cable connecting two ground locations.

a telecommunications line, service, or connection that uses wire running over land or underground to connect to a network: telegraph and telephone landlines.

Also called land·line tel·e·phone [land-lahyn tel-uh-fohn], /ˈlændˌlaɪn ˈtɛl əˌfoʊn/, land·line phone . a telephone that is connected by wire to a network.Compare smartphone, dumbphone.

Citizens Band Radio Slang. a telephone.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of landline

First recorded in 1860–65; land + line¹

How to use landline in a sentence

Domestically, the prime minister maintains the dubious line that he is the only man who can keep the still-fragile peace.
Cambodia’s Smoke-and-Mirrors Democracy|David Shaftel|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
For every nanosecond that I miraculously lift off the ground, I land with an inordinately loud thud.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze|Lizzie Crocker|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Last week I turned 40, a bittersweet occasion because I crossed the line to living longer without my mother than with her.
Everyone at This Dinner Party Has Lost Someone|Samantha Levine|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Completed in 1953 and composed with standard line breaks and punctuation, the book was completely ignored upon submission.
The Lost Novel of Nobel-Winner José Saramago|Charles Shafaieh|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Is it any wonder that the interests of large corporations and unions get to the front of the line?
The 100 Rich People Who Run America|Mark McKinnon|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
In this position, the line of cavalry formed the chord of the arc described by the river, and occupied by us.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
Then with your victorious legions you can march south and help drive the Yankee invaders from the land.
The Courier of the Ozarks|Byron A. Dunn
Our talk ranged from the Panhandle to the Canada line, while our horses jogged steadily southward.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
It is a lofty and richly-decorated pile of the fourteenth century; and tells of the labours and the wealth of a foreign land.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 60, No. 372, October 1846|Various
Worst danger zone, the open sea, now traversed, but on land not yet out of the wood.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton

British Dictionary definitions for landline

land line

noun

a telecommunications wire or cable laid over land

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012