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Glite Dictionary
balkline

balkline

9.9
A marked line on a billiard table behind which players put the cue ball at the start
  • noun
  • /ˈbɔːklaɪn/
  • Specialized
translation icon : línea de baulk
  • The referee carefully positioned the balls behind the balkline before announcing the start of play.

Examples

  • In certain billiards games, players must ensure the cue ball stays within the balkline until their first shot.

  • The faded balkline made it difficult for beginners to know where to place the balls.

  • The balkline is crucial for starting the game.

  • Can you see the balkline on the table?

  • In certain billiards games, players must ensure the cue ball stays within the balkline until their first shot.

  • The faded balkline made it difficult for beginners to know where to place the balls.

  • The referee carefully positioned the balls behind the balkline before announcing the start of play.

Synonyms

baulk-line
vsbalkline
  • Jargon
9.9

A line across a billiard table behind which players place the cue ball at the start of a game

is the same but often written without a hyphen
string line
vsbalkline
  • Jargon
8.9

An invisible or marked line on a pool table behind which cue balls are placed at game start

is specifically a marked line rather than possibly imaginary

Surface Forms

balkline singular
balklines plural

Morphology

balkline = balk + line (opaque) = balk + line

The term 'balkline' is specific to billiards and its meaning is not directly derivable from 'balk' and 'line' without specialized knowledge.

Etymology

Balkline comes from the old word balk, meaning a 'bar' or something that 'stops', and line, meaning a marked line. So a balkline is the line on a billiard table that marks where the cue balls must be placed or kept at the start of play.