lineage
Definitions
The line of descent from an ancestor; a person's ancestry or family background.
血统，世系；某人的家世、出身。
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedline (līnea, a thread) + -age (collective state) = the whole 'line' of people descended one from another. Imagine each generation as a knot on a single rope stretching back in time — that cord of ancestry is your lineage. To 'trace your lineage' is to follow the line backward.
Root line still carries 17 more wordsWhy It Means This
lineage is the clearest case of line leaping from a physical thread to a family thread. Latin līnea (a cord) gave the idea that successive generations form an unbroken 'line,' like beads on a string. The word kept the geometric metaphor while moving entirely into the human domain of ancestry and descent.
Common Collocations
- 1.royal lineage皇室血统
- 2.trace one's lineage追溯血统
- 3.pure lineage纯正血统
- 4.direct lineage直系血统
Example Sentences
- 1.
She can trace her lineage back to a medieval king.
- 2.
The breed is prized for its pure lineage.
- 3.
He comes from a long lineage of doctors.
Synonym Comparison
- lineage — the line of descent, emphasizing the chain across generations
- ancestry — your ancestors collectively; broader and more neutral
- descent — the act/fact of coming down from a forebear; 'of French descent'
- pedigree — a recorded line, often for animals or to stress prestige
- heritage — what is passed down (culture, tradition), not the bloodline itself