How to Use straight-line in a Sentence

straight-line

adjective
  • When a straight-line jet stream blows in from the Pacific Ocean.
    — Vivian Manning-Schaffel, Los Angeles Times, 17 June 2024
  • His straight-line speed is quite strong, although his first step or two aren’t the quickest.
    — Corey Pronman, The Athletic, 26 Aug. 2024
  • The future is never a straight-line projection of the present.
    — Matthew Continetti, National Review, 25 Mar. 2023
  • Storms will sweep into the area Friday night, bringing the threat of heavy rains, strong straight-line winds and hail.
    — Robert A. Cronkleton, Kansas City Star, 7 June 2024
  • The strongest storms could have damaging straight-line winds, hail and heavy rain.
    — Leigh Morgan, al, 1 July 2023
  • The straight-line distance between the island and the Chinese coast is a little more than 1,800 miles.
    — Nina Turner, Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2024
  • It’s designed to create a straight-line path to the baseball while keeping the swing plane level.
    — Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 4 July 2024
  • The simpler way to move around the pallet would be a set of straight-line walking paths with pivots in between.
    — Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, 6 Feb. 2024
  • Its straight-line silhouette has a long skirt with side slits for airflow and handy pockets to boot.
    — Clara McMahon, Peoplemag, 18 May 2024
  • The strongest storms could bring damaging straight-line winds, hail, lightning and heavy rain.
    — Leigh Morgan, al, 13 Aug. 2023
  • Damaging straight-line winds and large hail are the primary threats.
    — Haadiza Ogwude, The Enquirer, 9 May 2024
  • Geis shot a straight-line kick towards the center of the goal, but the shot was saved by St. Francis goalkeeper Arya Jamkhandi.
    — Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 25 Feb. 2024
  • Strong straight-line winds of 70 mph, quarter-to-golf ball-sized hail and heavy rain are also likely Friday night.
    — Sophie Carson, Journal Sentinel, 31 Mar. 2023
  • That electrified front axle is about more than straight-line heroics.
    — Lawrence Ulrich, Robb Report, 19 June 2025
  • The storm brought straight-line winds that knocked over more than 30 utility poles along the main road into Westminster.
    — Molly Fellin Spence, Baltimore Sun, 14 Aug. 2023
  • The Performance models aren’t purely about straight-line speed, though.
    — Bradley Iger, Robb Report, 6 July 2023
  • Gusty to locally damaging straight-line winds will be the main concern.
    — Matthew Cappucci, Washington Post, 20 Apr. 2023
  • Large hail and damaging straight-line winds will be the primary hazards.
    — Robert A. Cronkleton, Kansas City Star, 3 July 2024
  • The asset will be amortized on a straight-line basis over a seven-year period.
    — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 May 2024
  • Rolling a quarter along a three-inch straight-line path would involve only one rotation.
    — Jack Murtagh, Scientific American, 20 June 2023
  • The jeans had a high-rise silhouette and wide, straight-line legs that made the actress look taller, especially when paired with her summer-ready wedges.
    — Clara McMahon, People.com, 28 May 2025
  • Here’s the severe weather outlook for today: The strongest storms could have damaging straight-line winds, hail and heavy rain.
    — Leigh Morgan, al, 20 July 2023
  • High water caused several road and school closures, and near 60 mph straight-line winds took the roof off a building in Russell County.
    — Rae Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 11 May 2023
  • But straight-line grunt isn't the SS Yukon's most profound characteristic.
    — Barry Winfield, Car and Driver, 20 July 2023
  • Some storms could become strong to severe, with damaging straight-line winds and hail being the primary threats.
    — Haadiza Ogwude, The Enquirer, 4 Aug. 2023
  • Wednesday is forecast to be the most volatile day of the week, with strong tornadoes and damaging straight-line winds in excess of 75 mph possible.
    — Kathryn Prociv, NBC News, 9 Apr. 2024
  • Any undrafted free agent who gets a chance in the NFL has to have a chance to be effective on special teams, and Adams put his combination of strength and straight-line speed to work.
    — The Indianapolis Star, 10 May 2023
  • Both my parents voted straight-line red at every election.
    — Jim Barach, Orlando Sentinel, 1 Dec. 2024
  • Although the Colt trails much of the group in straight-line performance, its engine revs willingly and seamlessly, and its shifter stirs smoothly.
    — Kevin Smith, Car and Driver, 4 Mar. 2023
  • But this is on par for a hot hatch powered by internal combustion, but straight-line speed is not really what this car is about.
    — James Morris, Forbes, 22 Mar. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'straight-line.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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