lineament
/ˈlɪnɪəm(ə)nt
/noun
1 (usually lineaments) literary A distinctive feature or characteristic, especially of the face: I recognized those haggard lineaments...
- Their final powerful lines reduced to lineaments around the eyes.
- His vanity is a lineament in his character which had entirely escaped me.
- Here's a man who clearly knows how to achieve the lineaments of gratified desire on the faces of his women, as I think William Blake once phrased it.
Synonyms
distinctive features, features, distinguishing characteristics, hallmarks, properties, traits;
form, outline, lines, contours;
configuration, physiognomy, profile, face, countenance, visage
2 Geology A linear feature on the earth’s surface, such as a fault.Gravity and magnetic data also portray the NE-SW-trending lineament outlined by the Mesozoic faults, suggesting a link between the Hardangerfjord Shear Zone and the Highland Boundary Fault....
- The region east of the gravity lineament has witnessed intensive magmatism and basin development since Mesozoic time.
- Basanites were sampled from six localities within the outcrop of the Batain Nappes and define two lineaments, similar in trend to the Qalhat Fault.
Origin
Late Middle English: from Latin lineamentum, from lineare 'make straight', from linea 'a line' (see line1).