Mason-Dixon line

[ mey-suhn-dik-suhn ]

/ ˈmeɪ sənˈdɪk sən /

Save This Word!

noun

the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland, partly surveyed by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon between 1763 and 1767, popularly considered before the end of slavery as a line of demarcation between Free States and Slave States.

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Also Mason and Dixon line .

Origin of Mason-Dixon line

An Americanism dating back to 1770–80

Words nearby Mason-Dixon line

masochist, masochistic, mason, mason bee, Mason City, Mason-Dixon line, Masonic, Masonite, Mason jar, masonry, masonry cement

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use Mason-Dixon line 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
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 the end, the line between magic and religion may be something of an artificial one.
Harry Potter and the Torah of Terror|Candida Moss, Joel Baden|January 4, 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
Our talk ranged from the Panhandle to the Canada line, while our horses jogged steadily southward.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
I have drawn a Line between the figures at the extream changes, that next below the Line is the extream.
Tintinnalogia, or, the Art of Ringing|Richard Duckworth and Fabian Stedman
My station was on the right of the line, where the breastwork, ending in a redoubt, was steep and high.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
The engineer officer charged with preparing the line of retreat reported that the one bridge across the Elster was not sufficient.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison

British Dictionary definitions for Mason-Dixon line

Mason-Dixon Line

Mason and Dixon Line

/ (ˈmeɪsə n ˈdɪksən) /

noun

the state boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania: surveyed between 1763 and 1767 by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon; popularly regarded as the dividing line between North and South, esp between the free and the slave states before the American Civil War

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

Cultural definitions for Mason-Dixon line (1 of 2)

Mason-Dixon line

Part of the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland established by the English surveyors Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon in the 1760s. The line resolved disputes caused by unclear description of the boundaries in the Maryland and Pennsylvania charters.

notes for Mason-Dixon line

Though the line did not actually divide North and South, it became the symbolic division between free states and slave states. Today, it still stands for the boundary between northern and southern states.

Cultural definitions for Mason-Dixon line (2 of 2)

Mason-Dixon line

A boundary line between Pennsylvania and Maryland, laid out by two English surveyors, Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon, in the 1760s. Before and during the Civil War, the line was symbolic of the division between slaveholding and free states. After the war, it remained symbolic of the division between states that required racial segregation and those that did not.