color line

noun

variants US color line or British colour line
plural color lines
: a set of societal or legal barriers that segregates people of color from white people (as by restricting social interaction or requiring separate facilities) and prevents people of color from exercising the same rights and accessing the same opportunities as white people
usually used with the
His father … had grown up in California with Jackie Robinson, who broke the color line in Major League Baseball. Maureen O'Donnell

called also color bar

Examples of color line in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The novel tested theories about assimilation and the color line. Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Mar. 2025 How the Black Press Helped Integrate Baseball In the 1930s and ’40s, Black newspapers like the Pittsburgh Courier used their platform to help break the sport’s color line. JSTOR Daily, 20 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1873, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of color line was in 1873

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Cite this Entry

“Color line.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/color%20line. Accessed 9 Apr. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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