adj. 1. Belonging to or being in the direct line of descent from an ancestor. 2. Derived from or relating to a particular line of descent; hereditary. 3. Linear. [Middle English, from Old French, from Late Latin līneālis, consisting of lines, from Latin līnea, line; see LINE1.] line·al·ly adv. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.