party line

1. One or more of the policies or principles of a political party to which loyal members are expected to adhere.
2. A telephone circuit connecting two or more subscribers with the same exchange.

Telephone service available at a lower rate than a Private Line. It allows multiple users to share the same line, but users are not allowed to interfere with each other.

The official policy of an organization or government, as in The current party line opposes legalized abortion in all cases. This term, dating from about 1830, was originally used for a political party's official policy but in the mid-1900s was almost exclusively applied to the rigid dicta of the Soviet Communist Party. Since then it has returned to looser use.

The noun has 2 meanings:

Meaning #1: the policy of a political group

Meaning #2: a telephone line serving two or more subscribers

The phrase party line may refer to:

• Party line (politics), an informal term for the agenda of a political party
• Party line (telephony), a system where multiple telephone customers are connected to the same phone line
• The Partyline Line (books), a series of books by Carrie Austen
• "Party Line" (SMW episode), an episode of Super Mario World
• The Party Line (radio), a topical sitcom on BBC Radio 4
• Party Line (film), a 1988 indie film
• "Party Line", the opening track on The Kinks' 1966 album, Face to Face (album)
• Partyline, a Washington, D.C.-based punk rock band
• The Party line, a Chicago Black Hawks ice hockey line in the 1980s

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