line of scrimmage 810
holds. People say this when you thank or praise them for doing something and they want to say that they are only doing their job.
line of 'scrimmage n in American football, a line running parallel to the width of the field where the ball is placed at the beginning of each period of play
line of 'sight also line of 'vision n pl. lines of sight the imaginary straight line along which one looks towards an object
'line-out n the method in RUGBY UNION by which the ball is returned to play by being thrown in between two lines of players from each team
'line printer n a machine which prints out information from a computer at a very high speed —ing n [U]
lin·er /'laɪnə/ n 1 [C] a large passenger ship especially one of several owned by a company: an ocean liner → see also AIRLINER, CRUISE LINER 2 [C;U] an EYELINER 3 [C] a piece of material used inside another to protect it: a nappy liner | a bin liner | A semi-rigid polythene liner was used for the pool.
'liner notes n [P] AmE for SLEEVE NOTES
lin·er·train /'laɪnətreɪnl-ər-/ n a FREIGHTLINER
lines /laɪnz/ n [P] 1 the words learnt by an actor to be said in a play: Have you learnt your lines yet? 2 BrE a usually stated number of written lines to be copied by a pupil as a punishment: The teacher gave me 100 lines. 3 lit a poem: 'Lines on the Death of Nelson' → see also MARRIAGE LINES
lines·man /'laɪnzmən/ n pl. -men /-mən/ 1 (in sport) an official who stays near the lines marking the side of the playing area and helps the UMPIRE or REFEREE especially by deciding when a ball has gone outside the limits 2 a LINEMAN
line-up /'laɪn-ʌp/ n [C usually sing.] 1 a) an arrangement of people, especially side by side in a line looking forward b) AmE a line of this sort arranged by the police, containing a person thought to be guilty of a crime and looked at by a witness who tries to recognize the criminal 2 the (arrangement of) players or competitors at the beginning of a race or game: There are seven horses in the lineup. 3 a set of events, following one after the other: What's next on the lineup? → see also LINE UP
lin·ger /'lɪŋgə/ v [I(ON)] 1 to remain for a time instead of going, especially because one does not wish to leave; delay going: She lingered outside the school after everyone else had gone home. | They lingered over coffee and missed the train. 2 to be slow to disappear: The pain lingered on for weeks. | The event is over, but the memory lingers on. → see also LINGERING 3 to be close to dying for a long time, especially when suffering from a disease
lin·ge·rie /'lænʒəri;lˌlɒnʒə'reɪ, 'lænʒəri:/ n [U] underclothes for women, especially for sale in shops: Underwear and nightdresses are in the lingerie department.
lin·ger·ing /'lɪŋgərɪŋ/ adj [A] slow to reach an end or disappear: a lingering death/illness | The official announcement finally extinguished any lingering hopes we might have had. —ly adv
lin·go /'lɪŋgə/ n slang pl. -goes a language, usually foreign: I'd like to go to France but I don't speak the lingo.
lin·gua fran·ca /ˌlɪŋgwə 'fræŋkə/ n a language used between peoples whose main languages are different. It may originally be made up of parts of several languages: English serves as a lingua franca in some parts of the world. → compare PIDGIN
lin·gual /'lɪŋgwəl/ adj tech 1 of the tongue 2 (of a sound) made by the movement of the tongue → see also BILINGUAL
lin·gui·ni /lɪŋ'gwi:ni/ n [U] AmE a flat thin PASTA in the shape of long narrow pieces
lin·guist /'lɪŋgwɪst/ n 1 a person who studies and is good at foreign languages 2 also lin·guis·ti·cian /ˌlɪŋgwɪ'stɪʃən/ tech a person who studies linguistics
lin·guis·tic /lɪŋ'gwɪstɪk/ adj of languages, words, or linguistics: linguistic development/change —ally /kli/ adv
lin·guis·tics /lɪŋ'gwɪstɪks/ n [U] the study of language in general and of particular languages, their structure, grammar, history etc → compare PHILOLOGY
lin·i·ment /'lɪnɪmənt/ n [U] a liquid substance containing oil, to be rubbed on the skin to cure soreness and stiffness of the joints → compare EMBROCATION
lin·ing /'laɪnɪŋ/ n [C;U] (a piece of) material covering the inner surface of an article of clothing, a box etc: a coat with a silk lining | brake linings → see also SILVER LINING
link¹ /lɪŋk/ n 1 a single ring of a chain 2 [(between, with)] something which connects two other parts: Research has established a link between smoking and lung cancer. | a new rail link between two towns (=a train service between them) | The country has now severed (=broken) all links with its former ally. → see also LINKS, CUFF LINK, MISSING LINK
link² v 1 [T(UP)] to join or connect: The road links all the new towns. | The police suspect that the two crimes may be linked. | They walked with linked arms/with their arms linked. | The road will link Manchester and Birmingham with/to London. 2 [I(TOGETHER, UP with)] to be joined or connected: In the second part of the programme, we'll be linking up with American radio for an interview with the President. | My own work links up with the research you are doing. → see also LINKUP
Link trademark in the UK, a system by which people can get money from their bank or BUILDING SOCIETY accounts by using a special plastic card (a Link card) in a CASH MACHINE
link·age /'lɪŋkɪdʒ/ n 1 [C] a system of links or connections 2 [S;U(between, with)] a connecting relationship (between things or ideas) 3 [S;U(between, with)] the idea of connecting two or more different questions in the hope of getting an agreement on both: A union spokesman rejected linkage between a wage increase and changes in working practices.
link·man /'lɪŋkmən/, link·wom·an /-ˌwʊmən/ fem. — n pl. -men /-mən/ a person whose job is to introduce all the separate parts of a television or radio broadcast
links /lɪŋks/ n pl. links [C+sing./pl. v] a piece of ground on which GOLF is played, especially near the sea; GOLF LINKS
link-up /'lɪŋk-ʌp/ n an arrangement by which different things are connected: a live TV linkup between studios throughout Europe
Lin·nae·us, Ca·ro·lus /lɪ'ni:əs, -'neɪ-, kæ'rəuləs/ (1707-78) a Swedish BOTANIST (=a scientist who studies plants) who invented the system, called the Linnaean System, by which plants and animals are put into groups according to their GENUS (=general type) and SPECIES (=particular type)
lin·net /'lɪnɪt/ n a small brown singing bird
li·no·cut /'laɪnəkʌt/ n 1 [U] the art of cutting a pattern on a block of linoleum 2 [C] a picture printed from such a block
li·no·le·um /lɪ'nəliəm/ also li·no /'laɪnə/ BrE — n [U] smooth shiny material in flat sheets used as a floor-covering, made up of strong cloth combined with a hard material. It is used especially in kitchens because it is easy to clean.
Li·no·type /'laɪnətaɪp/ trademark a type of system used in printing for arranging TYPE (=small blocks of metal with letters on them) in solid lines. Because of the use of computers in TYPESETTING, Linotype is no longer much used: a Linotype operator
lin·seed /'lɪnsi:d/ n [U] the seed of FLAX
linseed 'oil n [U] the oil from linseed, used in linoleum, and in some paints, inks etc
lint /lɪnt/ n [U] 1 soft material used for protecting wounds 2 especially AmE for FLUFF
lin·tel /'lɪntl/ n a piece of stone or wood across the top of a window or door, forming part of the frame
Li·nus /'laɪnəs/ a character in a US CARTOON STRIP called PEANUTS. He is a boy who takes his BLANKET (=a cover for a bed) with him everywhere, because he would not feel happy or confident without it. → see also SECURITY BLANKET
Li·nux /'laɪnʌks/ trademark a computer OPERATING SYSTEM that was invented by Linus Torvalds, a Finnish university student, and which you do not have to pay for. Some people prefer Linux to other operating systems, such as Windows, because Linux is not made by a large company.
li·on /'laɪən/ also li·on·ess /'laɪənəs, -nəs/ fem. — n 1 a large yellowish-brown animal of the cat family which hunts and eats meat, and lives mainly in Africa, the male having a thick