Words / C1

LIN-ee-uh/ˈlɪniə/

Linear means in a straight line, or progressing as one step after another: a linear narrative, a linear relationship (in maths, a straight-line link). Straight is everyday; sequential is a cousin. Line (already in the dictionary) is the noun. Non-linear stories jump in time. Do not call a messy process linear to make a Gantt chart look honest.

Meaning

Going in a straight line, or progressing in a simple sequence.

Examples

• “A linear timeline hid a parallel night clinic the PDF never named.”
• “Straight is everyday. Sequential is step-by-step. A linear equation is maths. Parallel and simultaneous are contrasts. If two clinics ran at once, the story is not linear.”

Good to know

Straight-line; one-after-another. Everyday: straight / sequential. Maths: a linear relationship. Contrast: parallel / non-linear. A Gantt chart is not automatically true.

Near in meaning

straight

New