Blueline
noun, verb ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A reproduction of the material submitted for printing, computer-generated or printed from film, provided to the customer for approval before the material is printed.
- 1 To create the bluelines for material that is about to be printed.
"It was decided to make the color separation in the plotting, in order to eliminate bluelining and redrafting."
- 2 To check the bluelines before printing material.
"Although claiming editorship, my involvement amounted to occasional 'bluelining', a deal of 'cutting-to-fit' and the general work required in designing and laying-out a book."
- 3 To veto a portion of a budget.
"In 1961 the Governor bluelined the funds."
- 4 To edit a legal document.
"It seems sensible under a range of circumstances to have that power to be able to blueline them— or redline them, as the case may be— so that they are removed from the register."
- 5 To mark on a patient's body where the surgical incision is to be made.
"Bone removal was continued in order to "blueline" the vestibule and then extended superiorly over the vestibule until Bill's bar was exposed."
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- 6 To designate a certain area as representing one in which investment is risky. Canada, US
"Not unlike the negative results of the bluelining and steering practices of many banks and real estate firms, such efforts leave bitterness in their wake and serve to bolster the worst fears and prejudices of both races."
Example
More examples"It was decided to make the color separation in the plotting, in order to eliminate bluelining and redrafting."
Etymology
From blue + line.
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.