hard lines
Preserved but no longer current.
Hard terms; "rather rough treatment"; exacting. Lines here means "one's lot in life," as, "The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage" (Ps. xvi, 6), i.e. my lot is excellent.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “hard lines” mean?
Hard terms; "rather rough treatment"; exacting. Lines here means "one's lot in life," as, "The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage" (Ps. xvi, 6), i.e. my lot is excellent.
Is “hard lines” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.