Picket line

Picket line
Picket Pick"et, n. [F. piquet, properly dim. of pique spear, pike. See {Pike}, and cf. {Piquet}.] 1. A stake sharpened or pointed, especially one used in fortification and encampments, to mark bounds and angles; or one used for tethering horses. [1913 Webster]

2. A pointed pale, used in marking fences. [1913 Webster]

3. [Probably so called from the picketing of the horses.] (Mil.) A detached body of troops serving to guard an army from surprise, and to oppose reconnoitering parties of the enemy; -- called also {outlying picket}. [1913 Webster]

4. By extension, men appointed by a trades union, or other labor organization, to intercept outsiders, and prevent them from working for employers with whom the organization is at variance. [Cant] [1913 Webster]

5. A military punishment, formerly resorted to, in which the offender was forced to stand with one foot on a pointed stake. [1913 Webster]

6. A game at cards. See {Piquet}. [1913 Webster]

{Inlying picket} (Mil.), a detachment of troops held in camp or quarters, detailed to march if called upon.

{Picket fence}, a fence made of pickets. See def. 2, above.

{Picket guard} (Mil.), a guard of horse and foot, always in readiness in case of alarm.

{Picket line}. (Mil.) (a) A position held and guarded by small bodies of men placed at intervals. (b) A rope to which horses are secured when groomed.

{Picketpin}, an iron pin for picketing horses. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • picket line — picket .line n a group of people who stand outside a factory and try to prevent people from going in or coming out during a ↑strike on a picket line ▪ So far, there has been very little violence on the picket line. ▪ Very few workers were willing …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • picket line — picket lines N COUNT A picket line is a group of pickets outside a place of work. The miners are trying to get factory workers to join them on the picket line... No one tried to cross the picket lines …   English dictionary

  • picket line — picket ,line noun count a PICKET. Workers who cross a picket line continue to work while other workers are on STRIKE …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • picket line — n: a line of people picketing a business, institution, or organization Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996 …   Law dictionary

  • picket line — UK US noun [C] HR, WORKPLACE ► PICKET(Cf. ↑picket) noun …   Financial and business terms

  • picket line — n. a line or cordon of people serving as pickets …   English World dictionary

  • picket line — noun a line of people acting as pickets • Hypernyms: ↑line * * * noun, pl ⋯ lines [count] : a line or group of people who are refusing to go to work until their employer agrees to certain demands She joined her coworkers on the picket line. The… …   Useful english dictionary

  • picket line — UK / US noun [countable] Word forms picket line : singular picket line plural picket lines a picket. Workers who cross a picket line continue to work while other workers are on strike …   English dictionary

  • Picket line — A picket line is a horizontal rope, along which horses are tied at intervals. The rope can be on the ground, at chest height (above the knees, below the neck), or overhead. The overhead form usually is called a high line.A variant of a high line …   Wikipedia

  • picket line —  Union protest technique, creating a line of union members which nonunion workers and customers would have to pass in order to enter or leave a business.  ► “The picket line, once largely honored by unionized and nonunion workers alike, appears… …   American business jargon

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