edge

noun

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\ 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 Phrases Containing edge Learn More About edge

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. See More

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Last year citizens of Niamey, the capital of Niger located on the edge of the Sahara Desert, suffered through 100-degree-F heat for 174 days. — Brooke Bowser, Scientific American, 10 May 2022 Castillo opened the game by framing a fastball on the edge of the strike zone. — Charlie Goldsmith, The Enquirer, 10 May 2022 The rural area’s largest town — Las Vegas, New Mexico, population 13,000 — sits on the eastern edge of the fire area and appeared safe for now thanks to fire lines dug with bulldozers and other preparations over the past week. — Cedar Attanasio And Scott Sonner, USA TODAY, 9 May 2022 Mother and daughter took to the experiment like scientists on the edge of discovery. — Washington Post, 9 May 2022 Officials were concerned about winds that had whipped up more flames on the northern edge of the fire near some very small communities of several hundred people. — Cedar Attanasio And Kathleen Ronayne, Anchorage Daily News, 9 May 2022 An alternate base is Escalante, a city on the northern edge of the monument with a visitor center and access to rugged terrain in the Escalante River Basin. — San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 May 2022 Lightning caused another fire at a home on the northern edge of Raleigh. — Fox News, 7 May 2022 This adventure resort sits on Northeast Caye, a big, sandy island on the edge of the Glover’s Reef Atoll. — Graham Averill, Outside Online, 7 May 2022 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Now, the 6-foot-4, 210-pound Walsh is as an elite tight end and edge rusher, ready to get to the next level under those Friday night lights for the Redwings. — Patrick Z. Mcgavin, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2022 Edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie, LB Troy Andersen, QB Desmond Ridder, edge rusher DeAngelo Malone. — Tim Bielik, cleveland, 30 Apr. 2022 Cornerback, defensive line, edge rusher and offensive line are the team’s biggest needs. — Baltimore Sun, 28 Apr. 2022 Evan Neal – edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux from Oregon or Cincinnati cornerback Sauce Gardner. — Matt Young, Chron, 21 Apr. 2022 Some low-rise wooden apartment buildings edge the lake. — Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 18 Apr. 2022 Predictions that Macron may edge out Le Pen on April 24 by as little as four to six percentage points have unnerved the president’s supporters, as well as countries throughout Europe. — Washington Post, 11 Apr. 2022 Matilda Ekh delivered the dagger, though, as her two 3-pointers were enough to edge out the Wolverines. — Eli Mckown, Detroit Free Press, 11 Feb. 2022 Consequently, the smaller parties were empowered to edge out the Christian Democratic Union, party of the nation’s previous chancellor, Angela Merkel. — Jack Nasher, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2021 See More

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.