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Draw the line

Idiomatic Phrase
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

To establish a clear boundary or limit beyond which one will not proceed; it signifies the point where tolerance ends and principles or refusal begin.

Detailed Definition
Draw the line means to set a boundary, establish a limit, or decide that something has gone too far. In poetry, it is useful for moral, emotional, political, or aesthetic thresholds: the speaker may tolerate pain until a final violation, or distinguish love from possession, freedom from chaos, art from propaganda. The phrase’s visual image of a line invites spatial symbolism: borders, margins, fences, signatures, and divisions. It can also raise the question of who has the power to draw boundaries.
Example
Example in poetry:
A poet might draw the line at praising a tyrant, showing that conscience has limits; In a dramatic monologue, the speaker draws the line between mercy and cowardice; The phrase can mark a moral boundary, as when a lover draws the line at betrayal; A satire may draw the line where public duty becomes private greed.
Additional Notes
This idiom is built on the metaphor of marking a boundary that must not be crossed. In poetry, it can express moral limits, emotional self-protection, social rules, or the moment when tolerance becomes refusal. It works well with images of borders, thresholds, chalk marks, fences, rivers, and shorelines. Students should notice that the phrase may be firm, defensive, liberating, or punitive, depending on who draws the line and who is expected to obey it.
Also Known As
set limit
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