linesman

[ lahynz-muhn ]

noun

, plural lines·men.

1. Sports.
   1. an official, as in tennis and soccer, who assists the referee.
   2. Football. an official who marks the distances gained and lost in the progress of play and otherwise assists the referee and field judge.
   3. Ice Hockey. either of two officials who assist the referee by watching for icing, offside, and substitution violations and fouls and by conducting face-offs.
2. lineman ( def 1 ).

linesman

/ ˈlaɪnzmən /

noun

1. an official who helps the referee or umpire in various sports, esp by indicating when the ball has gone out of play
2. a person who installs, maintains, or repairs telephone or electric-power lines US and Canadian namelineman

Word History and Origins

Origin of linesman¹

First recorded in 1855–60; line ¹ + 's ¹ + -man

Example Sentences

But as the City players celebrated, the linesman raised his flag to indicate offside, with Bernardo Silva stood in front of Wolves goalkeeper Jose Sa as the ball went into the net.

From BBC

In that occasion, though, the other linesman allowed the play to continue.

From Seattle Times

“The linesman said to me, ‘I’m sorry, I made a mistake,’” De Ligt said after the 2-1 loss in which Madrid’s stoppage-time winner by Joselu came after a VAR intervention that overturned an initial offside call.

From Seattle Times

Bayern coach Thomas Tuchel said it was a “disastrous decision from the linesman and from the referee.”

From Seattle Times

"There was a disastrous decision from the linesman and the referee. It feels like a betrayal in the end," he added.

From BBC