edge

1 of 2

noun

plural edges
1
a
: 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
2
a
: 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
4
edges : short fine hair that grows along a person's hairline : baby hair
With carefully finessed edges in delicate swoop and wave designs, hairstyles as simple as a high ponytail or sleek bob can quickly be transformed into a work of art …Devon Abelman
usually singular when used before another noun
edge styling
edgeless adjective

edge

2 of 2

verb

edged; edging

transitive verb

1
a
: 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
Phrases
on 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.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The edges of tiles in Penrose tilings don’t fall at regular intervals, so specifying their distribution requires continuous real numbers rather than discrete integers. Ben Brubaker, WIRED, 17 Mar. 2024 The White House is adamant that the Pentagon’s work around the war’s edges will not evolve into a combat role. Missy Ryan, Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2024 The first segment remains entirely within the Central Valley, not penetrating even the outer edges of the Bay Area and of Southern California. Joe Mathews, The Mercury News, 16 Mar. 2024 Minerva recommends using cuticle oil to moisturize nails and surrounding skin, and wearing gloves to do the dishes to avoid exposure to hot water, which can cause the polish to prematurely lift around the edges. Kate Watson, Peoplemag, 16 Mar. 2024 Byron Young are among the young defensive linemen and edge rushers that will return to a team that was expected to be among Super Bowl contenders. Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 15 Mar. 2024 Heat the cream until tiny bubbles appear around the edges of the pan, but do not bring the cream to a boil. Robin Miller, The Arizona Republic, 14 Mar. 2024 The water’s edge quickly became a hive of activity as players, caddies, camera crew and a rules official swarmed the area where McIlroy subsequently made his one-shot penalty drop. Jack Bantock, CNN, 14 Mar. 2024 Far from the cutting edge, these technology nodes nevertheless are used in the bulk of chipmaking, with 28 nm being the most advanced node using planar CMOS transistors instead of the more advanced FinFET devices. IEEE Spectrum, 6 Mar. 2024
Verb
In a rematch of the 2022 final – which Świątek clinched with a similarly imperious 6-4 6-1 win – the Pole narrowly edged a back-and-forth opening set, but the second was over in the blink of an eye. Matias Grez, CNN, 18 Mar. 2024 Hong Kong stocks edged less than 0.1% lower at 17,082.11, ending its three consecutive days of gain. Zimo Zhong, Quartz, 13 Mar. 2024 Donald Trump edged Joe Biden 40%-38% in an exclusive USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll, a near-tie in a fluid electorate as the candidates head out of the starting gate. Susan Page, USA TODAY, 13 Mar. 2024 The number of independent voters in historically Republican Arizona has edged up over the past few years, as fewer voters choose to register with either major party. Jack Healy, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2024 Joe Brusuelas, chief economist at RSM, said the seasonal glitches woven throughout the January report — especially on housing costs — may have edged into the February data, too. Rachel Siegel, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024 Instead, New Mexico’s House – the Mountain West’s steals leader – edged Butler, four votes to three. Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Mar. 2024 Clark’s 72-hole score of 265 was the lowest in the tournament’s history, edging Rory McIlroy’s 267 in 2015. Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 4 Mar. 2024 Couples and groups of friends congregate at the adults-only pool that’s edged with luxe cabanas. Miami Herald, 4 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'edge.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

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.

Verb

Middle English eggen "to set (the teeth) on edge," derivative of egge edge entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of edge was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near edge

Cite this Entry

“Edge.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/edge. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

edge

1 of 2 noun
1
a
: the cutting side of a blade
a knife's edge
b
: the sharpness of a blade
a razor with no edge
c
: a harsh or sharp quality
his voice had a sarcastic edge
2
a
: the line where an object or surface begins or ends
also : the narrow part next to it
the edge of the deck
b
: the line where two plane faces of a solid meet
an edge of the cube
3
: advantage sense 3
our experience gave us an edge
edged
ˈejd
adjective

edge

2 of 2 verb
edged; edging
1
: to give an edge to
edge a sleeve with lace
2
: to advance slowly or by short moves
edged my chair closer

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