Meaning & use
supply line
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Meanings
nouncountable
A route or system for delivering food, fuel, or equipment, especially to military forces or distant operations.
Grammar: Countable; often used in the plural 'supply lines'. It can be literal (roads, ships) or figurative (a chain of providers).
Patterns
- cut off supply lines
- supply lines to a place
- protect supply lines
The army's supply line was cut off by heavy snow.
Enemy forces attacked the supply lines to the front.
A long supply line makes it harder to keep soldiers fed.
nouncountablebusiness
In business, the network of companies and transport that moves goods from producers to sellers or customers.
Grammar: Countable and often plural; common in business and logistics contexts.
Patterns
- global supply lines
- disrupt supply lines
- supply line management
The pandemic disrupted supply lines around the world.
Companies are trying to shorten their supply lines to reduce risk.
Good supply line management keeps stores from running out of stock.
Word forms
| plural | supply lines |
|---|
Common combinations
- cut a supply line
- Rebel fighters cut the supply line to the capital.
- supply line to
- The supply line to the base runs through the mountains.
- disrupt supply lines
- A port strike could disrupt supply lines for weeks.
- secure a supply line
- Troops were sent to secure the supply line.
- global supply lines
- Global supply lines depend on reliable shipping.
Synonyms and how they differ
- supply route
- A supply route is the physical road or path used; a supply line can also mean the whole system, including storage and transport.
- logistics
- Logistics is the broad activity of organizing supplies; a supply line is one specific route or network within it.
- lifeline
- A lifeline is a figurative route that keeps something alive; a supply line is more concrete and often military.
Word family
- supply verb
- to provide something that is needed.
- supplier noun
- a company or person that provides goods.
Commonly confused: supply line or supply chain?
supply line vs supply chain
A supply chain is the whole sequence of production and delivery, including suppliers and factories; a supply line usually refers to the transport route or the delivery system itself.
Practice
The mountain roads were bombed, cutting the army's ______ to the front.
Choose one answer.
The sentence describes a physical route for delivering goods to troops, which is a 'supply line'. 'Supply chain' is the whole business network, 'supply and demand' is an economic idea, and a 'supply teacher' is a temporary teacher.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “supply line”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.