Meaning & use
line of argument
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
A connected series of points or reasons that someone uses to support a conclusion or persuade others.
Grammar: Countable: pursue a line of argument, two lines of argument. The plural is lines of argument.
Patterns
- follow a line of argument
- develop a line of argument
- a line of argument against something
The lawyer followed a clear line of argument to show that the contract was invalid.
I found her line of argument hard to accept because it ignored the costs.
This essay develops a line of argument about how cities affect health.
Word forms
| plural | lines of argument |
|---|
Common combinations
- pursue a line of argument
- He pursued this line of argument until the judge interrupted.
- develop a line of argument
- The writer develops her line of argument over three chapters.
- follow a line of argument
- It is hard to follow his line of argument when he jumps between topics.
- weak line of argument
- The lawyer's weak line of argument failed to persuade the jury.
- abandon a line of argument
- The debater abandoned that line of argument after a strong reply.
Synonyms and how they differ
- reasoning
- Reasoning is the general process of thinking logically, while a line of argument is one specific chain of points.
- case
- A case is the whole set of arguments for something, while a line of argument is a single strand inside it.
- train of thought
- A train of thought describes how ideas follow in a person's mind, while a line of argument is meant to persuade others.
- logic
- Logic is the underlying principle of valid thinking and is less specific than a single line of argument.
Word family
- argue verb
- to give reasons for or against something
- argument noun
- a reason or a quarrel
- argumentative adjective
- fond of arguing
- arguable adjective
- able to be argued but not certain
Commonly confused: line of argument or argument?
line of argument vs argument
Argument alone can mean either a reasoned case or a quarrel, whereas a line of argument always means reasoning.
Practice
The professor said the student's ____ was clear, though she disagreed with the conclusion.
Choose one answer.
A line of argument is a chain of reasons. Line of sight, credit and fire are other fixed phrases with different meanings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “line of argument”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.