Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun An anchored line thrown as a support to someone falling or drowning.
  • noun A line shot to a ship in distress.
  • noun A line used to raise and lower deep-sea divers.
  • noun A means or route by which necessary supplies are transported.
  • noun One that is or is regarded as a source of salvation in a crisis.
  • noun A diagonal line crossing the palm of the hand and believed to indicate the length and major events of one's life.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A line used by firemen to lower people from a burning building.
  • noun Nautical: A rope stretched anywhere on a vessel for the safety of the men in bad weather or when they are manning yards: in the latter case it is stretched from the mast to the lift.
  • noun One of several lines attached to a life-buoy or life-boat, to enable a person in the water to reach the boat or buoy more readily.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The anem given to one of the creases on the palm; its length is said by palmists to indicate how long one will live.
  • noun A line or rope which raises or lowers a deep-sea diver.
  • noun A line from a vessel that people in a body of water can cling to to save themselves from drowning.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A line to which a drowning or falling victim may cling to.
  • noun A means or route for transporting indispensable supplies.
  • noun A source of salvation in a crisis.
  • noun nautical On the deck of a boat, a line to which one can attach oneself to stay aboard on rough seas

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a crease on the palm; its length is said by palmists to indicate how long you will live
  • noun line that raises or lowers a deep-sea diver
  • noun line thrown from a vessel that people can cling to in order to save themselves from drowning
  • noun support that enables people to survive or to continue doing something (often by providing an essential connection)
  • noun a crease on the palm; its length is said by palmists to indicate how long you will live

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From life + line.

Support

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Examples

  • Liverpool, which routed both United and Villa before the two-week international break, looked set to squander the title lifeline those results provided in a frustrating match at Fulham.

    unknown title 2009

  • Liverpool, which routed both United and Villa before the two-week international break, looked set to squander the title lifeline those results provided in a frustrating match at Fulham.

    unknown title 2009

  • Liverpool, which routed both United and Villa before the two-week international break, looked set to squander the title lifeline those results provided in a frustrating match at Fulham.

    unknown title 2009

  • In order to succeed, both personally and professionally, you need to be surrounded by an indispensable circle of trusted advisers, mentors, and colleagues -- what I call lifeline relationships.

    Keith Ferrazzi: Who's Got Your Back: The Dream Team (Part 2 of 5) 2009

  • However, she also signaled she would fight the cut in funding for small-business development centers, which she described as a "lifeline that we must strengthen not weaken."

    NYT > Home Page By ROBB MANDELBAUM 2011

  • However, she also signaled she would fight the cut in funding for small-business development centers, which she described as a "lifeline that we must strengthen not weaken."

    NYT > Home Page By ROBB MANDELBAUM 2011

  • Carey's strike gave his Parkhead pals hope of a title lifeline b e f o r e Gers hit back.

    The Daily Record - Home 2010

  • Moeller said the council isn't likely to support a budget for the group unless at least a portion of the money goes to McMorran Place, which he called the lifeline for downtown.

    Paul & Matt's Sports Attack 2009

  • Moeller said the council isn't likely to support a budget for the group unless at least a portion of the money goes to McMorran Place, which he called the lifeline for downtown.

    Paul & Matt's Sports Attack 2009

  • In order to succeed, both personally and professionally, you need to be surrounded by an indispensable circle of trusted advisors, mentors, and colleagues - what I call lifeline relationships.

    The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com 2009

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