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battle lines

battle lines is the plural of battle line.

Meaning of battle line

Noun

battle line (plural battle lines)

  1. The notional line on either side of which opposing forces are arrayed, and at which they meet in battle; a fortified line, short of the line where battle is expected, and behind which forces are arrayed; a forward line of infantry or other force, prepared for battle.
    • "You say he is in Armstrong's rear, do you? Damn him! That's just where I have been trying to get him all day, and I'll be in his rear directly. Face your battle lines about! Armstrong, push your skirmishers forward -- crowd 'em both ways! I'm going to Starnes. You'll hear from me in about five...1894, Dabney H. Maury, Recollections of a Virginian in the Mexican, Indian, and Civil Wars, section 17
  2. A line of battle.
  3. (figuratively, plural-normally) Any of those parts of a contest which, as a result of strategic decisions on both sides, are most closely fought and will likely determine the contest's course and outcome.
    • There's battle lines being drawn / And nobody's right if everybody's wrong1966 December, Stephen Stills, “For What It's Worth”performed by Buffalo Springfield

Questions about battle lines

What is battle lines the plural of?
Battle lines is the plural of battle line.

Words near battle lines in the dictionary

  1. battle it out
  2. battle jacket
  3. battle jackets
  4. Battle Lake
  5. battle line
  6. battle lines
  7. battle map
  8. Battle Mountain
  9. Battle of Alberta
  10. Battle of Britain
  11. Battle of Gaugamela

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: battle lines (page history and authors); battle line (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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