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edge
[ej]
noun
a line or border at which a surface terminates.
Grass grew along the edges of the road. The paper had deckle edges.
Synonyms: ,a brink or verge.
the edge of a cliff; the edge of disaster.
any of the narrow surfaces of a thin, flat object.
a book with gilt edges.
a line at which two surfaces of a solid object meet.
an edge of a box.
the thin, sharp side of the blade of a cutting instrument or weapon.
the sharpness proper to a blade.
The knife has lost its edge.
sharpness or keenness of language, argument, tone of voice, appetite, desire, etc..
The snack took the edge off his hunger. Her voice had an edge to it.
British Dialect.a hill or cliff.
an improved position; advantage.
He gained the edge on his opponent.
Cards.
advantage, especially the advantage gained by being the age or eldest hand.
Ice Skating.one of the two edges of a skate blade where the sides meet the bottom surface, made sharp by carving a groove on the bottom.
Skiing.one of the two edges on the bottom of a ski that is angled into a slope when making a turn.
verb (used with object)
to put an edge on; sharpen.
to provide with an edge or border.
to edge a terrace with shrubbery; to edge a skirt with lace.
to make or force (one's way) gradually by moving sideways.
Metalworking.
to turn (a piece to be rolled) onto its edge.
to roll (a piece set on edge).
to give (a piece) a desired width by passing between vertical rolls.
to rough (a piece being forged) so that the bulk is properly distributed for final forging.
verb (used without object)
to move sideways.
to edge through a crowd.
to advance gradually or cautiously.
a car edging up to a curb.
verb phrase
to insert or work in or into, especially in a limited period of time.
Can you edge in your suggestion before they close the discussion?
to defeat (rivals or opponents) by a small margin.
The home team edged out the visitors in an exciting finish.
edge
/ ɛ /
noun
the border, brim, or margin of a surface, object, etc
a brink or verge
the edge of a cliff
the edge of a breakthrough
maths
a line along which two faces or surfaces of a solid meet
a line joining two vertices of a graph
the sharp cutting side of a blade
keenness, sharpness, or urgency
the walk gave an edge to his appetite
force, effectiveness, or incisiveness
the performance lacked edge
dialect
a cliff, ridge, or hillside
(capital) (in place names)
Hade Edge
to have a slight advantage or superiority (over)
nervously irritable; tense
nervously excited or eager
to make someone acutely irritated or uncomfortable
verb
(tr) to provide an edge or border for
(tr) to shape or trim (the edge or border of something), as with a knife or scissors
to edge a pie
to push (one's way, someone, something, etc) gradually, esp edgeways
(tr) cricket to hit (a bowled ball) with the edge of the bat
(tr) to tilt (a ski) sideways so that one edge digs into the snow
(tr) to sharpen (a knife, etc)
Other Word Forms
- edgeless adjective
- outedge verb (used with object)
- underedge noun
- unedge verb (used with object)
- ˈ岵 noun
- ˈ岵 adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of edge1
Word History and Origins
Origin of edge1
Idioms and Phrases
on edge,
(of a person or a person's nerves) acutely sensitive; nervous; tense.
impatient; eager.
The contestants were on edge to learn the results.
set one's teeth on edge. tooth.
have an edge on, to be mildly intoxicated with alcoholic liquor.
He had a pleasant edge on from the sherry.
Synonym Study
Example Sentences
Jennifer, a job recruiter, lives next door and has been on edge in recent days.
Next ball Bedingham played and missed at a peach of a delivery from Starc which nipped away and narrowly avoided the edge of his bat.
That can put them on edge and heighten their separation anxiety, Langan said, and if their owners are depressed or grief-stricken about loss and uncertainty, the animals absorb those emotions too.
"As we edge closer to the High Seas Treaty coming into force, governments need to double down - using both transparency and new technologies - to safeguard the ocean," he added.
He wants them to keep the edge they’ve developed since being shutout.
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When To Use
The word edge most commonly refers to the sharp or angled side of an object or the place where something stops and something else starts—a border or margin. Edge is also used as a verb meaning to move sideways. Edge has many additional senses as both a noun and verb.When it’s used to refer to the side or tip of an object, the word edge often implies that it’s sharp or pointy.
- Real-life example: The sharp edge of a knife is the part that you use to cut things with.
- Used in a sentence: I accidentally gave myself a paper cut on the edge of the envelope.
- Real-life example: The edges of an object are its outermost borders or margins. When you write too close to the edge of a piece of paper, you might write on whatever’s next to it, like the surface of the table it’s on. The edge of a road is the point where it stops and something else begins, such as grass or a sidewalk. The edge of a cliff is the last point you can stand on before there is no more cliff and you will fall. This sense of the word can also be used in figurative ways, as in the edge of reality.
- Used in a sentence: The pencil rolled over the edge of the desk and fell on the floor.
- Used in a sentence: The boy edged past his sleeping father to sneak into the kitchen.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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