Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Moving in, consisting of, bounded by, or characterized by a straight line or lines.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Straight-lined; bounded by straight lines; consisting of a straight line or of straight lines; straight: as, a rectilinear figure or course. Also rectilineal.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective In a straight line.
  • adjective geometry, art Formed from straight lines.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective characterized by a straight line or lines

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[From Late Latin rēctilīneus : Latin rēctus, right; see reg- in Indo-European roots + Latin līnea, line; see line.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From post-Classical Latin; either from rectilīneāris or from rectilīneus (whence rectiline) + -ar, in both cases ultimately deriving from rectus ("straight") + līnea ("line").

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