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Glite Dictionary
⏳ Waiting turn 🏅 Next in order 🚶 In a queue
in line

in line

31 1.0
One after another in a row
  • idiom
translation icon : en fila
  • I stood in line with my pretend family for a long, long time.
  • stand in line
  • wait in line
  • get in line

It's weirdly easier to like stay in line when like I know the flow of conversation back and forth.

Examples

  • Eleanor stood in line for her coffee and gave her order to someone new.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • You are 63rd in line to the British throne.

    The Hustle (2019)

  • Everyone is keeping their place in line as these people need to get home.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • In other places, people had to stand in line for six or more hours to vote.

    Blog text (12)

  • I followed a group of prisoners to the mess hall and took my position in line.

    Academic text (2005)

  • We got to the airport and immediately got in line outside to have our bags searched.

    Blog text (9)

  • As they move slowly up toward the memorial, Alex gets in line behind them.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • Hundreds of prisoners, some eating, some leaving, some standing in line, filled the massive, high-ceilinged room.

    Academic text (2005)

  • I'd taxied over to the Vatican Museum at 8:15 A.M. and was first in line to see the Sistine Chapel.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • We waited in line for hours to buy tickets to the concert.

Synonyms

to line up
vsin line
115 2.6

Put people or things in a straight row

is used specifically for waiting one after another rather than arranging
to stand in line
vsin line
  • US
76 1.7

To wait in a line of people for your turn

is the same idea expressed with a different short phrase
to file
vsin line
61 3.7

To move in a line one after another

refers to staying in an orderly wait rather than moving forward
to queue
vsin line
  • UK
20 3.4

To form or join a line while waiting

describes being in an orderly sequence rather than the action of joining
to wait your turn
vsin line
17 2.0

Be patient and let others go before you until it is your turn

expresses being in an orderly one after another sequence rather than patient waiting
to queue up
vsin line
  • UK
3 3.1

To wait in a line to buy something or enter a place

focuses on being in an orderly sequence rather than the act of forming

Antonyms

disorderly
4 4.5

A place or thing that is untidy and not in order

How Orderly

uniserial
  • Specialized
8.7
in line
31 1.0
unordered
1 4.1

Surface Forms

in line positive

Morphology

in + line

The meaning 'waiting one after another in a queue' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'in' (position within) with 'line' (a queue or straight formation). This simple spatial/compositional pattern is common in English and across languages, so a B1 learner who knows both words can readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

The adverb in line comes from the idea of things or people standing in a line, one right after another. This picture shows order and movement in a row, so in line means 'in an orderly sequence' or one after another.