unlinealadj.
/(ˌ)ʌnˈlɪnɪəl/, U.S. /ˌənˈlɪniəl/ Not belonging or relating to the direct line of succession or inheritance. Also figurative. Cf. lineal adj. 2.
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > kinsman or relation > descendant > [adjective] > directly > not
unlineal1592
1592 T. Nashe Strange Newes sig. H4 The vnlineall vsurper of iudgement from all his true owners.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) iii. i. 64 They..put a barren Scepter in my Gripe, Thence to be wrencht with an vnlineall Hand. View more context for this quotation
1780 T. Sheridan Gen. Dict. Eng. Lang. II Unlineal, not coming in the order of succession.
1832 R. Cattermole Beckett 170 The Men of England..From her last Despot wrung The sceptre,..to grace A wiser not unlineal race.
1884 Notes & Queries 6 Oct. 264 The ancient manor house..has long since passed into unlineal hands.
1937 Sci. & Society 1 165 Soviet linguistic research did not spring into being, like Minerva, by a sudden and unlineal birth.
2011 M. F. Fahey Metaphor & Shakespearean Drama v. 137 The Prince..must authorize his royal lineage even as he covers the unlineal gap by which his father gained the throne.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2017; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1592