border

play

noun bor·der \ ˈbȯr-dər \

Definition of border

1 :an outer part or edge

at the borders of the forest

2 textiles :an ornamental design at the edge of a fabric or rug

3 :a narrow bed of planted ground along the edge of a lawn or walkway

a border of tulips

4 :boundary

on the border between New York and Canada

crossed the border into Italy

5 :a plain or decorative margin around printed matter

wedding invitations with a delicate gold leaf border

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bordered

play \-dərd\ adjective

See border defined for English-language learners

See border defined for kids

Examples of border in a Sentence

He grew up in Malaysia, near the Indonesian border.
They live just beyond the western border of the park.
the border of the Sahara
The quilt is quite plain except for its colorful border.
a broad red border on each plate
He planted pansies in the border.

Recent Examples of border from the Web

An official from the International Organization for Migration told reporters at least 18,500 Rohingya refugees have crossed the border in the past six days, joining the nearly 400,000 Rohingya already housed in squalid camps in Bangladesh.

— ishaan tharoor, Washington Post, "The world’s ‘most friendless people’ are under assault yet again," 31 Aug. 2017
The comments, which appeared to have been removed from Facebook on Tuesday, pointed to the deterioration in relations between the government and the United Nations since October, when insurgents attacked police border posts in Rakhine.

— nick cumming-bruce, New York Times, "More than 8,700 Rohingya Flee Myanmar Fighting This Week," 29 Aug. 2017
Trump has already complicated those efforts by threatening a government shutdown if Congress does not approve money for a Southern border wall.

— russell berman, The Atlantic, "Congress Prepares to Open Its Wallet for Texas," 28 Aug. 2017
Bernard de Lacolle border in hopes of finding residency in Canada.

— jacqueline charles, miamiherald, "Who is encouraging Haitians to cross the border? Canada wants to know.," 27 Aug. 2017
Vice principal Gaines’s prejudices aren’t Issa and Frieda's fault, but Issa’s refusal to address or mitigate them is her own failure and borders on active neglect.

— cate young, Cosmopolitan, "Insecure Recap: Issa Plays the Field and Molly Makes a Shocking Decision," 21 Aug. 2017
Narrowleaf ironweed is a plant that is now becoming a mainstay for the hot, sunny border.

— paul cappiello, The Courier-Journal, "Ironweeds. How this old field weed turned into a garden gem," 18 Aug. 2017
The U.S. response is to line the country's border with F-35s and other advanced aircraft, ships, and stations—enough conventional weaponry to overwhelm North Korea.

— jay bennett, Popular Mechanics, "The F-35 Is on Its Way to Stare Down North Korea," 17 Aug. 2017
Kushner was in support of the president’s Muslim ban and his proposal to build a wall at the Mexican border and the decision to fire former F.B.I. director James Comey.

— emily jane fox, vanityfair.com, "Jared and Ivanka Aren’t Pushing Bannon Out—Yet," 15 Aug. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'border.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of border

Middle English bordure, from Anglo-French, from border to border, from Old French bort border, of Germanic origin; probably akin to Old English bord board

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

border Synonyms

Synonyms

borderline, bound, boundary, brim, circumference, compass, confines, edge, edging, end, frame, fringe, hem, margin, perimeter, periphery, rim, skirt, skirting, verge

Related Words

ambit; brink, crest, curb, cusp, lip; ceiling, maximum; demarcation, extent, limitation, measure, mere, restriction, termination; borderland, frontier, march, outskirts, pale, selvage; lap; shore

Near Antonyms

center, core, heart; inner, inside, interior, middle, within

border

verb

Definition of border

bordered; bordering play \ˈbȯr-d(ə-)riŋ\

transitive verb

1 :to put a border on

a rug bordered with a pattern of leaves

bordered the garden with pansies

2 :to touch at the edge or boundary :bound

borders the city on the south

Slovenia borders Poland

intransitive verb

1 :to lie on the border

the U.S. borders on Canada

2 :to approach the nature of a specified thing :verge

borders on the ridiculous

—

borderer

play \-dər-ər\ noun

See border defined for English-language learners

Examples of border in a Sentence

Their property borders the park.
Tall trees border the avenue.
Two rivers border the city.

Recent Examples of border from the Web

They were stopped from entering by officials of an unidentified country that borders Syria, and were taken into custody.

— alan feuer, New York Times, "Queens Man Is Charged With Trying to Enter Syria to Join ISIS," 29 Aug. 2017
Rolling meadows define the property, which also boasts a smokehouse, summer kitchen and stone bank barn and is bordered by Amish farms and Susquehannock State Park.

— elizabeth finkelstein, Country Living, "This is the Stone Farmhouse We've Been Waiting Our Whole Lives to Buy," 24 Aug. 2017
Tatum, Adam Driver, Riley Keough, Daniel Craig, and Katie Holmes are joined by Jack Quaid and Brian Gleeson as two slightly hee-haw-ish yokels who border on parody.

— jordan hoffman, vanityfair.com, "Steven Soderbergh Opens Up His Office and His Process, If You Ask the Right Questions," 16 Aug. 2017
That’s a question bordering on the philosophical, but artificial intelligence (AI) can certainly make music and artwork that people find pleasing.

— matthew hutson, Science | AAAS, "How Google is making music with artificial intelligence," 8 Aug. 2017
Properties that border the facility to the south and east also are zoned residential, and include the Naperville Park District's Brush Hill Park and a cluster of apartment buildings leading toward River Road.

— bill bird, Naperville Sun, "After 76 years, IDOT asks Naperville to annex maintenance yard, rezone for residential use," 5 Aug. 2017
Some obligatory orientation: The Gaspe (gas-PAY) Peninsula is an extension of Quebec province roughly the size of Belgium that's bordered on the north by the St. Lawrence River and extends into the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

— alan solomon, chicagotribune.com, "Quebec's Gaspe Peninsula is hard to get to, easy to love," 13 July 2017
At times, Thoreau’s thought bordered on the nostalgic.

— Longreads, "Late in Life, Thoreau Became a Serious Darwinist," 13 July 2017
A shallow reflecting pool plays tricks with approaching guests, disguising itself as a continuation of the large slate gray tiles bordering the restaurant’s entrance.

— lindsey mcclave, The Courier-Journal, "Wiltshire At The Speed should not be missed | Review," 21 June 2017

First Known Use of border

14th century

border Synonyms

Synonyms

bound, edge, frame, fringe, margin, rim, skirt

Related Words

hem, trim; circumscribe, define, delineate, demarcate, outline, silhouette, sketch, trace; circle, compass, encircle, enclose (also inclose), environ, girdle, girth, loop, ring, round, surround, wall; check, confine, control, curb, limit, restrain, restrict

BORDER Defined for Kids

border

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noun bor·der \ ˈbȯr-dər \

Definition of border for Students

1 :a boundary especially of a country or state

2 :the outer edge of something

the border of the woods

3 :a decorative strip on or near the edge of something

border

verb

Definition of border for Students

bordered; bordering

1 :to put a border on

Border the garden with flowers.

2 :to be close or next to

The United States borders on Canada.

Medical Dictionary

border

play

noun bor·der \ ˈbȯrd-ər \

medical Definition of border

:an outer part or edge — see brush border

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border

Definition of border

borderer

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border

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border

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