lineament

noun

lin·​e·​a·​ment ˈli-nē-ə-mənt 

1

a

: an outline, feature, or contour of a body or figure and especially of a face

—usually used in plural

b

: a linear topographic feature (as of the earth) that reveals a characteristic (such as a fault or the subsurface structure)

2

: a distinguishing or characteristic feature

—usually used in plural

lineamental

ˌli-nē-ə-ˈmen-tᵊl 

adjective

Examples of lineament in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The drill target is located at a regional significant NNW lineament that controls the emplacement of the giant Chuquicamata deposit. —Sacramento Bee, 2 July 2024

While the fundamentals of the South African situation remain largely unchanged, its outward lineaments are shifting swiftly. —Jennifer Seymour Whitaker, Foreign Affairs, 10 June 2024

The drill target is located at a regional significant NNW lineament that controls the emplacement of the giant Chuquicamata deposit (Figure 10). —Kansas City Star, 4 June 2024

Will Arbery’s play about a group of young religious conservatives fearlessly delved into the right-wing battle zone of white identity in a Rogue Machine production directed by Guillermo Cienfuegos that gave hard-right ideology a human face and recognizable psychological lineaments. —Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 4 Dec. 2023

Hamilton originally performed the painstaking process for her installation lineament (1993) and recreated it a year later to publish (lineament · book/ball) as an edition. —Natasha Gural, Forbes, 5 Oct. 2022

An important interplay under Vatnajökull is between the glacier itself and the rock below - with all the fissures and crustal lineament, the weight of the glacier can potentially cause some seismicity. —Erik Klemetti, Discover Magazine, 19 Jan. 2011

In geology, lineament refers to a linear feature on the earth's surface, such as a fault, while literary usage refers to a distinctive facial feature or characteristic. —Natasha Gural, Forbes, 5 Oct. 2022

Jeff and Russell, whose character is more layered, deserve a few more realistic lineaments. —Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2019

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin lineamentum, from lineare to draw a line, from linea

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

lineament

noun

lin·​ea·​ment

ˈlin-ē-ə-mənt

: an outline or contour of a body or figure and especially of the face