Federal Contracting Acronym
CLIN
Contract Line Item Number
Plain-English definition
Contract Line Item Numbers structure priced items on awards—labor categories, ODCs, or deliverable units.
Why it matters
Contract Line Item Number (CLIN) is a core federal acquisition term used in regulations, solicitations, and contract administration.
Where you will see it
Federal notices on SAM.gov, contract attachments, registration systems, audit requests, and internal capture/proposal documentation.
Example in context
When reviewing a solicitation, a contractor confirms how CLIN is used in the notice, whether related clauses apply, and which internal subject-matter experts should validate the response.