assembly line

noun

1. an arrangement of machines, tools, and workers in which a product is assembled by having each perform a specific, successive operation on an incomplete unit as it passes by in a series of stages organized in a direct line.

assembly line

noun

1. a sequence of machines, tools, operations, workers, etc, in a factory, arranged so that at each stage a further process is carried out

assembly line

1. A line of factory workers and equipment along which a product being assembled passes consecutively from operation to operation until completed.

Notes

Assembly lines are found in many industries but are particularly associated with automobile manufacturing.

Word History and Origins

Origin of assembly line¹

An Americanism dating back to 1910–15

Example Sentences

Schnur added that the filibuster would almost certainly be eliminated and the body would become “almost an assembly line” for Trump’s judicial nominees.

From Los Angeles Times

Maybe I could have been a bank teller or an assembly line worker in a local manufacturing plant, or worked retail.

From Salon

This is a daily affair in their new, temporary home, a release after a 12-hour shift on the assembly line.

From BBC

It certainly wasn’t what I was expecting when I opened a bewitching, vintage-tinged box detailing a fantastical assembly line and saw a smattering of board game figurines.

From Los Angeles Times

Boeing is offering its staff a 25% pay bump over a four-year contract, in a bid to avoid a strike that could potentially shut down its assembly lines as early as Friday.

From BBC

Related Words

• production line