the brink

noun

: the edge at the top of a steep cliff

—usually used figuratively to refer to a point that is very close to the occurrence of something very bad or (less commonly) very good

He nearly lost everything because of his drug addiction, but his friends helped to pull him back from the brink.

The two nations are on the brink of war.

Doctors may be on the brink of finding a cure for this disease.

an animal that has been brought/pulled back from the brink of extinction

Examples of the brink in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Packers and quarterback Jordan Love had a chance to come back with a late drive in the fourth quarter, and nearly reached the brink of Chicago's red zone. —Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 11 Jan. 2026

There are far too many shortages and ration cuts facing relief missions in Venezuela and other countries on the brink. —William Lambers, Sun Sentinel, 11 Jan. 2026

Jeff Klaiber took those things and molded Lehman into an Olympian, at times pushing boundaries and pushing Lehman to the brink. —Andrew Carter, Chicago Tribune, 10 Jan. 2026

But corruption across all parts of government, mismanagement of funds and the convergence of environmental problems and stagnant leadership has the government on the brink. —Mostafa Salem, CNN Money, 9 Jan. 2026