verge
1the edge, rim, or margin of something: the verge of a desert; to operate on the verge of fraud.
the limit or point beyond which something begins or occurs; brink: on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
a limiting belt, strip, or border of something.
British. a narrow strip of turf bordering on a pathway, sidewalk, roadway, etc.
a decorative border, as on or around an object, structural part, etc.
limited room or scope for something: an action within the verge of one's abilities.
an area or district subject to a particular jurisdiction.
History/Historical. an area or district in England embracing the royal palace, being the jurisdiction of the Marshalsea Court.
the part of a sloping roof that projects beyond the gable wall.
Architecture. the shaft of a column or colonette.
a rod, wand, or staff, especially one carried as an emblem of authority or of the office of a bishop, dean, or the like.
Horology. a palletlike lever formerly used in inexpensive pendulum clocks.
Obsolete. a stick or wand held in the hand of a person swearing fealty to a feudal lord on being admitted as a tenant.
to be on the edge or margin; border: Our property verges on theirs.
to come close to or be in transition to some state, quality, etc. (usually followed by on): a statesman who verged on greatness; a situation that verged on disaster.
to serve as the verge or boundary of: a high hedge verging the yard.
Origin of verge
1Other words for verge
Words Nearby verge
Other definitions for verge (2 of 2)
Origin of verge
2Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use verge in a sentence
A strategy more than four decades in the making now stands on the verge of complete success.
How Presidents Have Shaped The US Supreme Court – And Why The Choice Of Its Next Justice Is So Crucial | LGBTQ-Editor | September 23, 2020 | No Straight NewsIn June, India’s shadow banking sector was on the verge of collapse.
Charted: How India’s $370 billion shadow banking sector is surviving the economic slump | Prathamesh Mulye | September 22, 2020 | QuartzIt may not be TikTok, but Microsoft is on the verge of acquiring a lineup of popular video game titles that could help grow its consumer and video game businesses.
What Microsoft gets by buying game publisher Bethesda Softworks in a $7.5 billion deal | jonathanvanian2015 | September 21, 2020 | FortuneWisconsin’s Common Ground Healthcare Cooperative was on the verge of ending operations in 2016 when itreceived a lifesaving $30 million loan, said CEO Cathy Mahaffey.
Only three of 26 Obamacare-era nonprofit health insurance co-ops will soon remain | lbelanger225 | September 6, 2020 | FortuneFor those efforts, they now get first dibs at drafting a player who could bring them from the verge of success to consistent playoff appearances.
First The New York Rangers Made The Postseason. Then They Got The No. 1 Draft Pick. | Julian McKenzie | August 13, 2020 | FiveThirtyEight
But to say the capital teeters on the verge of collapse is both melodramatic and misleading.
Heart of Darkness: Into Afghanistan’s Taliban Valley | Matt Trevithick, Daniel Seckman | November 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIt was a brutally hot day, 103 degrees, and the city was on the verge of a racial explosion.
Honoring The Late John Doar, A Nearly Forgotten Hero Of The Civil Rights Era | Gary May | November 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTWashington State is on the verge of passing new gun control legislation.
On the verge of turning 60 this December, Lennox still has a few items to cross off her bucket list.
All joking aside, what was once considered an expensive gimmick is on the verge of going mainstream.
Welcome to Oculus XXX: In-Your-Face 3D is the Future of Porn | Aurora Snow | October 18, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTLate into the night they lingered on the veranda, and he found himself on the verge of confessing all to her.
The Homesteader | Oscar MicheauxIt was still in the verge of possibility that his son might seek his father in that dismal chamber.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4 | Jane PorterA coward by nature, he had been on the verge of a nervous breakdown before the trial, thinking of what might happen.
The Homesteader | Oscar MicheauxThis mine is situated in low ground near the verge of the stream, and was at first only worked for gold.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2) | Francis TrevithickThe road we followedPg 134 closely skirts the coast for a great part of the distance, running at times on the verge of the ocean.
British Highways And Byways From A Motor Car | Thomas D. Murphy
British Dictionary definitions for verge (1 of 2)
/ (vɜːdʒ) /
an edge or rim; margin
a limit beyond which something occurs; brink: on the verge of ecstasy
British a grass border along a road
an enclosing line, belt, or strip
architect the edge of the roof tiles projecting over a gable
architect the shaft of a classical column
an enclosed space
horology the spindle of a balance wheel in a vertical escapement, found only in very early clocks
English legal history
the area encompassing the royal court that is subject to the jurisdiction of the Lord High Steward
a rod or wand carried as a symbol of office or emblem of authority, as in the Church
a rod held by a person swearing fealty to his lord on becoming a tenant, esp of copyhold land
(intr foll by on) to be near (to): to verge on chaos
(when intr, sometimes foll by on) to serve as the edge of (something): this narrow strip verges the road
Origin of verge
1British Dictionary definitions for verge (2 of 2)
/ (vɜːdʒ) /
(intr; foll by to or towards) to move or incline in a certain direction
Origin of verge
2Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with verge
In addition to the idiom beginning with verge
- verge on
also see:
- on the verge of
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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