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through-line

British

noun

a theme or idea that runs from the beginning to the end of a book, film, etc

"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

Example Sentences

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See Examples For:

through-line

There’s no obvious ideological through-line in these important decisions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026

Divided into three sections hinged together by a through-line of humanism, Elizabeth Alexander reminds the reader that Jordan “was a prolific poet whose lyrical voice linked political struggle with an ethic of love.”

From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2025

But it certainly has an emotional through-line, one composed of equal parts anger, grief and exultation, specifically as these are expressed through Black bodies.

From New York Times ● Nov. 15, 2024

But perceptual experience has been a through-line in the region’s contemporary art history, so it’s good to see a festival exhibition focused on Southern California.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2024

She said there was "a through-line" which connected her experience to those families who had lost a child.

From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2024

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