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

That same day, Obama had a call with Zohran Mamdani, who was on the brink of winning the New York City mayoral race. —Peter Slevin, New Yorker, 4 May 2026

State Farm’s decision to not renew some 72,000 residential policies in March 2024 because of its losses after a series of wildfires sparked fears that California’s home insurance market could be on the brink of collapse. —Los Angeles Times, 4 May 2026

The White House is intent on pushing for economic and political reforms in Cuba and has instituted a de facto oil blockade of the island that has brought it to the brink of humanitarian disaster. —Kim Hjelmgaard, USA Today, 4 May 2026

Tidal marshes are crucial nurseries for young Chinook salmon and a focal point for efforts to bring these fish back from the brink of extinction. —John Ryan, NPR, 3 May 2026