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Glite Dictionary
💬 To message 😏 To boast
to shoot a line

to shoot a line

1 8.3
To send a short message to someone by phone or text
  • phrasal verb
  • Informal
: enviar un mensaje
  • Shoot me a line and let me know your thoughts.

Examples

  • Please shoot a line to the team so they know about the meeting changes.

  • If you have any questions, don't hesitate to shoot a line.

  • I will shoot a line to my friend to see if she's available for lunch.

Synonyms

to make a call
vsto shoot a line
93 1.0

To phone someone

is for brief messages that may use phone text or email instead
to ping
vsto shoot a line
  • Texting
10 4.1

To send someone a short electronic message to get their attention

is used for short contact across phone text or email
to drop a line
vsto shoot a line
9 3.2

To send a short message to keep in touch

is used for brief contact without focus on maintaining long term ties
to shoot off
vsto shoot a line
  • Informal
3 4.1

To send a message quickly without much thought

is used for brief contact rather than focusing on speed or haste
to give a shout
vsto shoot a line
  • Informal
1 5.1

Call or message someone to let them know something

is used for short contact across channels rather than mainly to inform
to zap (an email)
vsto shoot a line
  • Texting
7.5

Send an email quickly, usually in an informal way when it is urgent

is for quick contact by any channel not only email

Antonyms

to ignore
∞ 1.0

Choose not to pay attention to someone or something

neglect
100 3.5

Not caring for someone or something that needs care

How Brief

to shoot a line
  • Informal
1 8.3
to text
  • Texting
296 2.6
to e-mail
  • Texting
1.3
call
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

shoot a line infinitive
shooting a line present participle
shoots a line third person singular
shot a line past
shot a line past participle

Morphology

shoot + a + line

The components give a plausible compositional cue: 'shoot' can convey sending quickly and 'line' can mean a short message, so a learner could infer 'send a brief message' if they recognize the colloquial sense of 'line'. However, 'shoot a line' is informal and relies on a non-literal conversational meaning of 'line' (and colloquial usage of 'shoot'), which is not fully predictable for a B1 learner without prior exposure. Therefore it is only partially transparent.

Etymology

Shoot a line can also mean to send a short message. One idea is that it comes from sending something fast down a phone or wire 'line'—to shoot a line is like sending a quick note along the line to someone. So it now means 'to send a quick message'.