pipeline

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈpaɪpˌlaɪn/^[1]

Etymology

It is a compound of pipe and line.^[2][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

A continuous conduit of pipes, chiefly underground: 1856 in Merriam-Webster, 1859 in Etymonline;^[3][2] the RHWU dates it to 1855–60.^[5]

Semantic evolution

The figurative sense, a channel of communication, is from 1921,^[2] and a system of supply from which things will come, as in the phrase in the pipeline, is a later use.^[6][4] In surfers' slang the hollow part of a large breaking wave is a pipeline, attested by 1963.^[2] The verb, to convey by pipeline, also exists.^[3][6]

Timeline

• 1856 – a line of pipes.^[3]
• 1921 – a channel of information.^[2]
• 1963 – the hollow of a wave (surfing).^[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A long pipe or line of pipes for carrying oil, gas or water over long distances.
2. A direct channel for passing information.
3. A system of supply or production; something in the pipeline is under way.

Verb

1. To convey by a pipeline.

Word family

• pipeliner

Related words

• pipe
• line
• conduit

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
5. ^ Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
6. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin