1
a
: most featured or prominently advertised : leading
… its oldest top-line act, the Rolling Stones, has long been taken as a symbol of the excesses of rock's nightmare side.—
Ethan Mordden
Ethan Mordden
b
: of the highest quality, level, or degree : top-of-the-line
The lauded ladies received top-line Southern hospitality …—Tim Allis
Tim AllisThe new chips may well make moderately priced workhorse computers—the type many people buy—perform more like today's top-line models.—Consumer Reports
Consumer Reports2
business
: relating to or concerned with gross sales or revenue
For real value creation, the merged company has to produce top-line growth and better margins through superior offerings to customers.—Geoffrey Colvin
Geoffrey Colvin
variants
or less commonly topline
plural top lines also toplines
1
business
: the line at the top of a financial report that shows gross sales or revenue before the deduction of expenses or losses
The top line is weak, with a meager 0.3% sales gain last year, to $669 million, which doesn't even keep up with inflation.—Jack Gage
Jack GageWhen I first started writing about business, earnings stories focused on two numbers: sales (the top line on a company's income statement) and net income (the bottom line, after deducting all expenses including taxes).—Kathleen Pender
compare bottom line sense 2a
Kathleen Pender2
usually topline
: the outline of the top of the body of an animal (such as a dog or horse)
A long-legged, long-moving individual with long topline is considered the optimum type for the horse show.—Linda Connors
Linda ConnorsExamples of top-line in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025
The Avs had brilliant top-line players but were tissue-paper thin, top-heavy and easily handled by deeper teams.
—Mark Lazerus, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2025
The task force said the receipts provided on its website—showing contract, grant and lease cancellations—represented about 30 percent of total savings, meaning the top-line figure is not yet verifiable.
—David Faris, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Apr. 2025
Thankfully, Congress instead passed appropriations bills with a higher top-line budget each time.
—The Editors, National Review, 12 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for top-line
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Adjective
Coupled with its robust profit margin exceeding 40%, a significant portion of this top-line growth is expected to translate directly into shareholder value.
—Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025
The Avs had brilliant top-line players but were tissue-paper thin, top-heavy and easily handled by deeper teams.
—Mark Lazerus, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2025
The task force said the receipts provided on its website—showing contract, grant and lease cancellations—represented about 30 percent of total savings, meaning the top-line figure is not yet verifiable.
—David Faris, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Apr. 2025
Thankfully, Congress instead passed appropriations bills with a higher top-line budget each time.
—The Editors, National Review, 12 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for top-line
Cite this Entry
“Top-line.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/top-line. Accessed 27 Apr. 2025.
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