How a line in a prison camp became a printer’s line and then the time limit for your homework. Tap ▶ to hear each step read aloud.
In the American Civil War (1861–1865), some prison camps had a line of posts or a low rail inside the fence. Any prisoner who crossed it could be shot by the guards.
Printers also had a dead line: a guide line on the printing press. Words placed beyond it would not print.
In the early 1900s, American newspapers used deadline for the time by which a story had to be ready. A story that came later was too late to print.
Today a deadline is any time limit.
Examples: the deadline for homework is Friday
, to meet a deadline
, to miss a deadline
.
Dead often means no way forward:
| dead end | a street with no way out |
| deadlock | a situation where nobody can move on |
| dead heat | a race with no winner |
French often says la date limite or simply uses une deadline. Une impasse is a dead end.
“Once you crossed it, you were dead. Now you’re just late.”