sightline

American

[sahyt-lahyn] / ˈsaɪtˌlaɪn /

Or sight line

noun

any of the lines of sight between the spectators and the stage or playing area in a theater, stadium, etc..

Some of the sightlines are blocked by columns.

sightline British

/ ˈsaɪtˌlaɪn /

noun

an uninterrupted line of vision, as in a theatre, etc, or from a vehicle joining a road

"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

Etymology

Origin of sightline

First recorded in 1915–20; sight + line ¹

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.

See Examples For:

sightline

I was in Dad’s sightline just as he was about to kiss Lana Turner while shooting the 1952 film “The Bad and the Beautiful.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

Fences crisscrossing the National Mall to hem in the Great American State Fair have blocked the famed sightline from the U.S.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2026

It’s not hard to imagine why Instagram might boost @tinyhouseperfect’s computer visions into my sightline.

From New York Times ● Feb. 4, 2024

The planets will also be so close to the horizon that any structure or sightline glitch could obscure them.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 23, 2023

In a half stupor, I turned around, but that brought Mr. Haber’s office directly into my sightline.

From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023