ship of the line

Ship of the line — Line Line, n. [OE. line, AS. l[=i]ne cable, hawser, prob. from L. linea a linen thread, string, line, fr. linum flax, thread, linen, cable; but the English word was influenced by F. ligne line, from the same L. word linea. See {Linen}.] 1. A… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

Ship of the line — Ship Ship, n. [OE. ship, schip, AS. scip; akin to OFries. skip, OS. scip, D. schip, G. schiff, OHG. scif, Dan. skib, Sw. skeep, Icel. & Goth. skip; of unknown origin. Cf. {Equip}, {Skiff}, {Skipper}.] 1. Any large seagoing vessel. [1913 Webster]… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

Ship of the line — A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th century through the mid 19th century, to take part in the the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring… …   Wikipedia

ship of the line — Date: 1706 a large warship; specifically a square rigged warship having at least two gun decks and designed to be positioned for battle in a line with other such ships …   New Collegiate Dictionary

On the line — Line Line, n. [OE. line, AS. l[=i]ne cable, hawser, prob. from L. linea a linen thread, string, line, fr. linum flax, thread, linen, cable; but the English word was influenced by F. ligne line, from the same L. word linea. See {Linen}.] 1. A… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

To cross the line — Line Line, n. [OE. line, AS. l[=i]ne cable, hawser, prob. from L. linea a linen thread, string, line, fr. linum flax, thread, linen, cable; but the English word was influenced by F. ligne line, from the same L. word linea. See {Linen}.] 1. A… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

Line of battle ship — Line Line, n. [OE. line, AS. l[=i]ne cable, hawser, prob. from L. linea a linen thread, string, line, fr. linum flax, thread, linen, cable; but the English word was influenced by F. ligne line, from the same L. word linea. See {Linen}.] 1. A… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

line of battle ship — Line Line, n. [OE. line, AS. l[=i]ne cable, hawser, prob. from L. linea a linen thread, string, line, fr. linum flax, thread, linen, cable; but the English word was influenced by F. ligne line, from the same L. word linea. See {Linen}.] 1. A… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

Line — Line, n. [OE. line, AS. l[=i]ne cable, hawser, prob. from L. linea a linen thread, string, line, fr. linum flax, thread, linen, cable; but the English word was influenced by F. ligne line, from the same L. word linea. See {Linen}.] 1. A linen… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

Line breeding — Line Line, n. [OE. line, AS. l[=i]ne cable, hawser, prob. from L. linea a linen thread, string, line, fr. linum flax, thread, linen, cable; but the English word was influenced by F. ligne line, from the same L. word linea. See {Linen}.] 1. A… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English