step out of line

step out of line

English

Verb

step out of line

1. (idiomatic) to break the rules of society.
   • 2009, Trudier Harris, The Scary Mason-Dixon Line: African American Writers and the South, LSU Press (→ISBN)

     By recalling the lynching and imagining that as the “rightful” place for black men who step out of line, Jesse, the sheriff, can collect his nerves sufficiently to confront the demonstrators

   • 2012, Henry Jacoby, Game of Thrones and Philosophy: Logic Cuts Deeper Than Swords, John Wiley & Sons (→ISBN), page 176:

     If you step out of line and indulge in immoral acts, you're breaking the contract with your fellow citizens.

   • 2013, Chris Hamilton, On the Path to Enlightenment, Balboa Press (→ISBN), page 65:

     We have been conditioned from early childhood to be afraid; if we step out of line we will not be accepted.

Translations

Translations

Italian: sgarrare (it)