straight-line

[ streyt-lahyn ]

adjective

1. Machinery.
   1. noting a machine or mechanism the working parts of which act or are arranged in a straight line.
   2. noting a mechanism for causing one part to move along a straight line.
2. Accounting. denoting uniform allocation, as in calculating the total depreciation over the life of a depreciable asset, dividing that into equal parts, and depreciating each segment at regular intervals.

straight-line

noun

1. (of a machine) having components that are arranged in a row or that move in a straight line when in operation
2. of or relating to a method of depreciation whereby equal charges are made against gross profit for each year of an asset's expected life

Word History and Origins

Origin of straight-line¹

First recorded in 1835–45

Example Sentences

In New Mexico, nothing is a straight line.

From Los Angeles Times

Changes in state law governing juveniles have mattered little to crime victims who draw a straight line between Gascón’s actions and street violence.

From Los Angeles Times

A train that travels at 230 mph needs a very straight line and that’s where cost starts to come in.

From BBC

"There's just a straight line all the way across the top of my body."

From BBC

Titled “Border Wall Ladder,” it’s an echo of Robert Rauschenberg’s 1953 “Automobile Tire Print,” a collaboration with composer John Cage, who drove his Model A Ford in a straight line over a puddle of paint and onto 20 sheets of paper.

From Los Angeles Times