chalk line
2
3.9
- noun
- Specialized
:
línea de tiza
- He showed me how he wanted it done, how to run a chalk line, and then nail a board along the line to use as a guide, setting each shingle on the edge of the board and moving along, one at a time.
- snap a chalk line
- chalk line to mark
- draw a chalk line
Examples
-
Yeah, there's a chalk line, Evan.
-
Each chalk line was approximately 3m.
Academic text (2000) -
They avoided looking at the chalk line.
Fiction book (1999) -
The residue chalk line gave us a point from which to line up the next row—this time from the top, not the bottom.
Blog text (4) -
To create a straight edge on the wall, use a chalk line to mark the guide.
-
Before cutting the wood, stretch a chalk line to ensure the cut is perfectly straight.
-
He used a chalk line to mark where the new fence would be built.
Synonyms
1
5.6
A string with chalk on it that you stretch and snap to mark a straight line
A string covered with chalk that you snap to mark straight lines on walls or floors
How Visible
Surface Forms
Morphology
The compound combines 'chalk' (the substance) and 'line' (a mark), so a learner who knows both words can infer it refers to a chalk-made line or the tool used to make such a line. This compositional, literal relation is straightforward and cross-linguistically common, making the expression immediately understandable at B1.
Etymology
Chalk line comes from a simple tool: a string covered in chalk that you pull tight and snap so it leaves a straight line on a wall or piece of wood. That's why the name means 'a way to mark a straight line' in building and woodworking.