edge

noun

\ˈej

Definition of edge

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : the cutting side of a blade a razor's edge

b : the sharpness of a blade a knife with no edge

c(1) : force, effectiveness blunted the edge of the legislation

(2) : vigor or energy especially of body maintains his hard edge

d(1) : incisive or penetrating quality writing with a satirical edge

(2) : a noticeably harsh or sharp quality her voice had an edge to it

(3) : a secondary but distinct quality rock music with a bluesy edge

e : keenness or intensity of desire or enjoyment lost my competitive edge

2a : the line where an object or area begins or ends : border on the edge of a plain

b : the narrow part adjacent to a border the edge of the deck

c(1) : a point near the beginning or the end especially : brink, verge on the edge of disaster

(2) : the threshold of danger or ruin living on the edge

d : a favorable margin : advantage has an edge on the competition

3 : a line or line segment that is the intersection of two plane faces (as of a pyramid) or of two planes

on edge

: anxious, nervous

edge

verb

edged; edging

Definition of edge (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1a : to give an edge to

b : to be on an edge of trees edging the lake

2 : to move or force gradually edged him off the road

3 : to incline (a ski) sideways so that one edge cuts into the snow

4 : to defeat by a small margin —often used with out edged out her opponent

intransitive verb

: to advance by short moves

Other Words from edge Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about edge

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Examples of edge in a Sentence

Noun

They peered over the edge of the roof. The fabric was frayed at the edge. He made us all nervous by standing so close to the edge of the cliff. She sat on the edge of the counter, swinging her legs. the edge of an ax His voice had a sarcastic edge. These amendments will blunt the edge of the legislation.

Verb

Edge the sleeve with lace. She edged away from him. Gasoline prices have been edging upward. I edged my chair closer to the table.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The Little Colorado loops right to the edge of the trail in places. — Roger Naylor, azcentral, "10 best hikes in Arizona show off state's diverse scenery," 13 July 2018 Between 1842 and 1941, the Bund anchored the eastern edge of Shanghai’s foreign enclaves—the International Settlement (jointly run by Great Britain and the United States) and the French Concession. — Maura Elizabeth Cunningham, WSJ, "‘City of Devils’ Review: Chicago on the Huangpu," 13 July 2018 Wavecrest Open Space Preserve In winter, this area on the southern edge of Half Moon Bay is a premier spot for watching raptors on the prowl for rodents like the California vole. — Jill K. Robinson, SFChronicle.com, "5 places to spot birds in Half Moon Bay," 12 July 2018 On the eastern edge of the strategically crucial South China Sea, populist strongman Rodrigo Duterte erodes freedoms in the Philippines. — James Stavridis, Time, "Democracy Isn't Perfect, But It Will Still Prevail," 12 July 2018 Search parties found their vehicle in Tskere village, in the Dusheti region of the country, and soon after recovered Lora’s body from the edge of a waterfall. — Harriet Sokmensuer, PEOPLE.com, "Family Allegedly Murdered While Living Abroad Wanted to Build a Playground for Local Kids," 11 July 2018 The California Highway Patrol said the woman climbed over the fence and is standing near the edge of the 730-foot-high span. — Claire Morgan, sacbee, "Woman threatening to jump from Foresthill Bridge," 10 July 2018 The edge of the bedroom mirror is still adorned with loads of credentials from the football camps he was invited to, and the official and unofficial visits to various college campuses. — Mac Engel, star-telegram, "A parent's pain over his imprisoned football star son," 10 July 2018 The Neighborhood: Waterside at River Park Place sits on the far north edge of Butchertown near the Ohio River. — Maggie Menderski, The Courier-Journal, "Where you can live on a typical income around downtown Louisville," 9 July 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Lucroy struggled in Texas and finished 2017 with Colorado, playing with a team that edged Milwaukee by one game for the second wild-card spot. — Jr Radcliffe, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Former Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy fumbles ball in bizarre walk-off loss to Houston," 11 July 2018 Bevin won the Republican nomination for governor in 2015 in a three-way race, edging second-place finisher Comer by a mere 83 votes. — Tom Loftus, The Courier-Journal, "Matt Bevin bashes Andy Beshear but won't say he's in governor's race," 10 July 2018 Minus Ewen, hammer throw was won by Mississippi's Janeah Stewart, who edged Northern Arizona's Brooke Andersen by two inches with a throw of 239-3. — Jeff Metcalfe, azcentral, "ASU senior Maggie Ewen wins NCAA outdoor shot put title," 7 June 2018 Lowe was a sectional runner-up in the 200 (26.45) before winning at the regional, riding a late surge to edge Bowman sophomore Melody Jones by .08 seconds. — Dave Melton, Post-Tribune, "Lowe's high expectations: Portage freshman Jaedyn Lowe takes big goals to state track," 31 May 2018 McBride narrowly edged Pope by just one percentage point in a three-person race with all of the votes in. — Leon Stafford, ajc, "Incumbents, newcomers take lead in south metro Atlanta vote results," 23 May 2018 Trump edged Democrat Hillary Clinton by less than 1 percentage point in Pennsylvania in 2016's presidential election. — NBC News, "Primaries set up November races in Pennsylvania, Nebraska and Oregon," 16 May 2018 Garner shot an even-par 144 over two days to edge Marist's John Pollock by one stroke to claim the title. — Nick Daschel, OregonLive.com, "Class 5A state boys golf: Thurston's Tyler Garner narrowly wins individual title, Marist the team champ," 15 May 2018 Greenwich also three-peated in Class LL, edging FCIAC-rival Trumbull by less than a point. — Sean Begin, courant.com, "The 2017-18 All-Courant High School Gymnastics Team," 4 May 2018

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

History and Etymology for edge

Noun

Middle English egge, going back to Old English ecg "cutting side of a blade, border," going back to Germanic *agjō "cutting side of a blade" (whence also Old Frisian eg "cutting side of a blade, sword," Old Saxon eggia, Old High German egga, ekka "cutting side of a blade, border, point, corner," Old Norse egg "cutting side of a blade"), feminine noun derivative from Indo-European *h₂eḱ- "sharp, pointed," whence also Latin aciēs "sharp part of a weapon"

Note: The base *h₂eḱ- "sharp, pointed" was productive of a large number of suffixed derivatives in the Indo-European daughter languages. Latin had a verbal base deriving from h₂eḱ-eh₁- "to be sharp" (see acetic acid, acid entry 2) and a presumed adjectival stem *acū- "sharp" (see acute). An apparently isolated derivative is Greek akmḗ "highest point" (see acme). For the derivative *h₂eḱ-r-/h₂oḱ-r-, with outcomes in Greek, Latin, and other languages, see acro-, mediocre. See also awn, ear entry 2.