1
Core meaning
Descent from a common ancestor or a sequence of development from an earlier predecessor.
Example
Genetic analysis identified a previously unknown lineage of the species.
lineage
/ˈlɪniɪdʒ/ · LIN-ee-ijnoun
Descent from a common ancestor or a sequence of development from an earlier predecessor.
Use lineage to express this relationship precisely: descent from a common ancestor or a sequence of development from an earlier predecessor.
What lineage Really Means
The word becomes easier to use when its closely related senses are separated and compared.
2
Common noun frame
Use this noun in a complete noun phrase, adding the complement that identifies what it refers to when needed.
Example
The manuscript's lineage can be traced through six later copies.
3
Analytical distinction
Choose it when this exact concept matters; a related term may describe its cause, evidence, or opposite instead.
Example
The theory belongs to an intellectual lineage extending back centuries.
Use lineage Naturally
Notice how the surrounding noun or clause reveals the exact shade of meaning.
Genetic analysis identified a previously unknown lineage of the species.
The manuscript's lineage can be traced through six later copies.
The theory belongs to an intellectual lineage extending back centuries.
Precision Matters
Lineage overlaps with several common words, but each carries a different emphasis.
lineage
vs.Means descent from a common ancestor or a sequence of development from an earlier predecessor.
derive from
Means come, originate, or be obtained from a source.
lineage
vs.Means descent from a common ancestor or a sequence of development from an earlier predecessor.
stem from
Means originate in or be caused by a stated source or condition.
lineage
vs.Means descent from a common ancestor or a sequence of development from an earlier predecessor.
precursor
Means a person, thing, substance, or development that comes before and often helps produce a later one.
lineage
vs.Means descent from a common ancestor or a sequence of development from an earlier predecessor.
domestication
Means the process of adapting wild animals or plants for human use through taming, cultivation, or selective breeding.
Test lineage in Context
The noun refers to descent through a common ancestral line.
1
Shared mutations indicate that the two populations descend from the same evolutionary ___.