Talk:Toe the line

message: The way I learned it is that "toeing the line" is almost but not quite crossing the line (risky behavior, for example). 
:Baloney. That meaning is "sticking your nose across the line". Or your finger.98.67.173.152 (talk) 15:39, 9 September 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Alternate meaning? 

message: After listening at the dinner table to three generations of teachers who come from a line of teachers this is my understanding.
"Toeing the Line" was used in 18th century educational settings by putting a chalk line on the floor where students did their recitations for the day to demonstrate their learning.  Since education was expensive thus a privilege a high expectation was set.  Reaching the standard and not having poor conduct was included in that expectation, thus "toeing the ine" demonstrated your staying within the societal standards, showing respect for the teacher and learning your lessons.
Other comments welcome.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by Gingerword (talk • contribs) 14:40, 28 June 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Alternate meaning? 

message: The Atheneum or Spirit of the English Magazines. Vol. 1 (April to October, 1831). Boston: Kane & Co. (1831). p. 188: "The master, therefore, necessarily became rather serious; and the whol gang of us being sent for on the quarter deck, we were ranged in a line, each with his toes at the edge of a plank, acording to the orthodox fashion of these gregarious scoldings, technically called 'toe-the-line matches'."
Most reference seem to be derived from the way sailors line up—including this one from 1831. KeepNoArgue (talk) 03:02, 31 August 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  1831 

message: This is tagged as having weasel words. It's not readily apparent what that tag refers to. I'd be happy to do some cleanup, if someone can point me in the right direction, or perhaps it's referring to old content. Any thoughts, folks? Nursebootsy (talk) 02:42, 16 March 2010 (UTC)
thread_title:  Weasel Words? 

message: Robert Rogers, a senior Commons official, has written on many an occassion that the origins of the phrase 'to toe the line' certainly don't come from the British House of Commons. Firstly, Members of Parliament were never allowed to carry swords in the Chamber, only the Serjeant-at-Arms wears a sword in the Chamber. Indeed, to this very day there are loops of pink ribbon in the Members' cloakroom for MPs to hang up their swords. Secondly, there weren't any lines in the Chamber in the days that gentlemen carried swords. The origins are most likely to come from the Royal Navy when barefooted seamen had line up along the seams in the deck planking for inspection. See both Robert Rogers and Rhodri Walters, How Parliament Works, 6th ed (Longman, 2006), p. 14 and Robert Rogers, Order! Order!: A Parliamentary Miscellany (London: JR Books, 2009), p. 27  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 94.195.126.183 (talk) 14:41, 29 May 2010 (UTC)
thread_title:  The lines in the British House of Commons 

message: Can someone define what this means? A phyisical or metaphorical phrase?  — Preceding unsigned comment added by Ginister (talk • contribs) 22:36, 13 August 2011 (UTC)
replies: text: Sword strapped means someone who is wearing a sword in its holder as opposed to carrying it in ones hand. Not sure of the origin, but I am sure Oxford or some such source would have its origin NealeFamily (talk) 19:02, 7 November 2012 (UTC)
thread_title: Sword-strapped (Origins paragraph)

message: Why are there both an Origins section and an Etymology section, and why do they contradict each other so completely?
81.101.197.228 (talk) 20:18, 30 December 2012 (UTC)
thread_title:  Origins vs Etymology 

message: Greetings!
Upon reading this article, the "Modern usage" section dedicates one sentence that gives an example of one usage of this phrase, and then the entirety of the rest of this section is dedicated to the phrase in terms of athletics and sports.
That seems to be a bit too much about that one side. In fact, after reading through this whole article, I frankly don't have much of an idea as to what the phrase means in terms of partisan politics.
Would someone like to come in to update this article to expand upon that meaning? If not, I may put some effort into doing so next month or something. JaykeBird (talk) 06:39, 8 August 2015 (UTC)
thread_title:  Too much about the sports application 

message: Tow means to pull.  We must all pull together.  We must pull or tow the line.  A party line is not a tow line, but the need for expending energy could be.  Pulling one's weight, or pulling in synchronous, is synonymous with towing the line.  Not toeing the line.   Longinus876 (talk) 12:49, 3 August 2022 (UTC)
thread_title:  Tow, Not Tow