lineal

/ˈlɪniəl/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈlɪniəl/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈli-nē-əl/ (ame, mw)

lineal — adjective

  • linealpositive
  • more linealcomparative
  • most linealsuperlative

1. describing someone who is your parent, grandparent, or further back — or your ch

1.形容詞C2
釋義

describing someone who is your parent, grandparent, or further back — or your child, grandchild, or further down — through an unbroken parent-to-child chain, not through aunts, uncles, or cousins.

例句

Gabriel proved he was a lineal descendant of the village's first mayor.

lineal + descendant — most common collocation

The throne can only pass to a lineal heir of the late king, not to a nephew.

lineal heir contrasted with collateral relatives

同義詞
  • direct

    everyday word for the same idea — 'a direct descendant'; less formal than 'lineal'

  • hereditary

    focuses on what passes down (a title, a disease), not on the family chain itself

  • ancestral

    looks backward only, toward forebears; 'lineal' works in both directions

反義詞
  • collateral

    relatives through siblings — aunts, uncles, cousins

文法句型

lineal + descendant/ancestor

lineal descent from [person]

用法筆記

Almost always used before a noun (lineal descendant, lineal heir, lineal ancestor). Distinguish from 'collateral', which describes relatives through siblings, like aunts, uncles, and cousins.

常見錯誤

❌My cousin is my lineal relative.
✅My cousin is my collateral relative.
💡cousins share a common ancestor but are not in your direct parent-to-child line, so they are collateral, not lineal.