Meaning
To find a meaning that is implied but not stated outright - inferring what a writer or speaker really thinks from hints, tone, omissions and context rather than from the literal words. Neutral register; very common in commentary on politics, literature and workplace communication. Neutral register; common in political, literary and workplace commentary. Regional use: General English.
Origin
A mid-19th-century expression. The Phrase Finder, which records the earliest known print use in The New York Times of August 1862 (concerning a dispatch by the British foreign secretary Earl Russell), derives it from a simple form of cryptography in which a hidden message was concealed between the lines of visible text; Grammarist repeats the invisible-ink explanation and notes that figurative use flourished in the 19th century. The cryptography story fits the wording and is the standard account, but it is an inference rather than a documented chain: the earliest known citations are already figurative, and no literal cryptographic usage stands behind them in the evidence.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- between the lines
- read between the lines of something
- reading between the lines
Usage Examples
- The statement never mentioned resignations, but anyone reading between the lines could see the chairman was on his way out.
- She said she was 'perfectly content' with the schedule, and I read between the lines that she was furious.
- Reading between the lines of the email, the committee had already made its decision before we presented.