Maginot line
a zone of heavy defensive fortifications erected by France along its eastern border in the years preceding World War II, but outflanked in 1940 when the German army attacked through Belgium.
any elaborate line of defense or set of barriers.
Origin of Maginot line
1Words Nearby Maginot line
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use Maginot line in a sentence
A lot of Republican candidates are trying to finesse the establishment-Tea Party Maginot line and be both things to all people.
The Tea Party Is Dead? Nah, That’s Just a Flesh Wound | Michael Tomasky | May 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTRivers was dug in behind this innocent-purchase-and-sale-in-good-faith Maginot line of his.
Murder in the Gunroom | Henry Beam PiperHitler would never dare attack the Maginot line, and eventually the war would just peter out.
Dave Dawson at Dunkirk | Robert Sydney Bowen
British Dictionary definitions for Maginot line
/ (ˈmæʒɪˌnəʊ, French maʒino) /
a line of fortifications built by France to defend its border with Germany prior to World War II; it proved ineffective against the German invasion
any line of defence in which blind confidence is placed
Origin of Maginot line
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cultural definitions for Maginot line
[ (mazh-uh-noh, maj-uh-noh) ]
A chain of defensive fortifications built by France on its eastern border between World War I and World War II. The Maginot line was designed to stop any future invasion by Germany, but it was never completed. In World War II, the Germans conquered France by going around the Maginot line to the north.
Notes for Maginot line
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Browse