timeline

noun

time·​line ˈtīm-ˌlīn 

variants or time line

plural timelines or time lines

1

a

: an arrangement or occurrence (as of past events) in time : chronology

After interviewing the suspect, the wardens pieced together a timeline of events and gathered enough evidence to file appropriate charges …

—Texas Parks and Wildlife Department

b

: a visual representation of events associated with a particular period of time arranged chronologically along a line or in a linear format

The book also includes a timeline, showing which dinosaurs lived when and where, and how the Earth has changed over millions of years.

—The Children's Bookwatch

In her "Foundations of Western Civilization" course … Prof. Julia Gossard has her students create a timeline of the history of food …

—Thomas Keith

c

: a schedule of planned events, actions, etc. : timetable sense 2

With just under a year left until your nuptials, here's what's next on your wedding planning timeline.

—Sarah Hanlon

Giving the client a say in every step of the project could create a delay and throw off the timeline …

—Katie Bates

2

: a period of time especially with respect to some project or event : time frame

And what's the timeline for implementing these changes?

—Mark Sovel

The stakes are high, and the timeline is tight.

—Rio Longacre

… school districts can't open before Labor Day and must end by June 15. But to meet that compressed timeline … , districts have had to consider trade-offs.

—Donna St. George

3

: a stream of social media posts : feed sense 3e

Algorithmic timelines quietly replaced chronological ones, until our social-media feeds no longer took direction from us, but rather directed us where they wanted us to go.

—Yair Rosenberg

And if there's something funny … I make sure to Retweet so others can cleanse their timeline and enjoy.

—Andy Richardson

4

: a branch of a theoretical multiverse that exists in parallel with other branches

… the notion that we're surrounded by a multitude of parallel selves, one of which might be living in a better timeline than the one we're stuck in.

—S. I. Rosenbaum

—used especially in science fiction

… Dune: Awakening is set in an "alternate" timeline from the original Frank Herbert novels, where something has happened to change the course of history.

—Wes Fenlon

Examples of timeline in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The series, which has been in development since 2020, spans two timelines in pre-independent India and contemporary Berlin and San Francisco. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 23 Nov. 2024

Richardson's family and their attorney are disputing the Police Department's timeline of events and would like to see justice served for Richardson's extensive physical and emotional injuries. —Bianca Moreno-Paz, Austin American-Statesman, 22 Nov. 2024

First American Art Magazine, one of the first such publications owned and operated by Native people, published a timeline of Indigenous art history in the Americas that denoted how the Native art world has changed over the centuries. —Debra Utacia Krol, The Arizona Republic, 22 Nov. 2024

Here’s a timeline of Adani headlines in the past year, tracking a series of allegations and counter-allegations since the publication of Hindenburg’s report, up until his indictment. —Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 21 Nov. 2024

For example, apartment buildings have a depreciation timeline of 27.5 years. —Brian Spear, Forbes, 21 Nov. 2024

Curiosity's journey through Gediz Vallis has provided critical data for reconstructing the timeline of water activity in the area. —Matt Robison, Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2024

Two weeks into his first presidential transition, Trump had only named three key people to his administration: the chief of staff, the attorney general and the ambassador to the United Nations, according to a timeline by Politico. —Kinsey Crowley, The Indianapolis Star, 21 Nov. 2024

Created by Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson, Yellowjackets uses dual timelines to tell the saga of a team of wildly talented high school girls soccer players (the Yellowjackets) who become the unlucky survivors of a plane crash deep in the remote northern wilderness. —Jackie Strause, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1907, in the meaning defined at sense 1