border
noun
the part or edge of a surface or area that forms its outer boundary.
border
American
[bawr-der]
/ ˈbɔr dər /
noun
-
borders
plural
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the part or edge of a surface or area that forms its outer boundary.
-
the line, limit, or delimiting geographic feature that separates one country, state, province, etc., from another: The largest lake within the borders of Canada is Great Bear Lake.
You cannot cross the border without a visa.
The largest lake within the borders of Canada is Great Bear Lake.
-
the district or region that lies along the boundary line of another.
-
the frontier of civilization.
-
the border,
-
the border between the United States and Mexico, especially along the Rio Grande.
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(in the British Isles) the region along the boundary between England and Scotland.
-
-
an ornamental strip or design around the edge of a printed page, a drawing, etc.
-
an ornamental design or piece of ornamental trimming around the edge of a fabric, rug, garment, article of furniture, etc.
-
Horticulture.
-
a long, narrow bed planted with flowers, shrubs, or trees.
-
a strip of ground in which plants are grown, enclosing an area in a garden or running along the edge of a walk or driveway.
-
the plants growing in such a strip.
a border of tulips along the path.
-
-
Theater.
-
a narrow curtain or strip of painted canvas hung above the stage, masking the flies and lighting units, and forming the top of the stage set.
-
verb (used with object)
-
borders,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bordered,
past participle, past
-
bordering
present participle
-
to make a border around; adorn with a border.
-
to form a border or boundary to.
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to lie on the border of; adjoin.
verb (used without object)
-
borders,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bordered,
past participle, past
-
bordering
present participle
-
to form or constitute a border; be next to.
California borders on the Pacific Ocean.
-
to approach closely in character; verge.
The situation borders on tragedy.
border
1
British
/ ˈbɔːdə /
noun
-
a band or margin around or along the edge of something
-
the dividing line or frontier between political or geographic regions
-
-
a region straddling such a boundary
-
( as modifier )
border country
-
-
-
a design or ornamental strip around the edge or rim of something, such as a printed page or dinner plate
-
( as modifier )
a border illustration
-
-
a long narrow strip of ground planted with flowers, shrubs, trees, etc, that skirts a path or wall or surrounds a lawn or other area
a herbaceous border
verb
-
(tr) to decorate or provide with a border
-
-
to be adjacent (to); lie along the boundary (of)
his land borders on mine
-
to be nearly the same (as); verge (on)
his stupidity borders on madness
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Border
2
British
/ ˈbɔːdə /
noun
-
(often plural) the area straddling the border between England and Scotland
-
the area straddling the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland
-
the region in S South Africa around East London
Border
3
British
/ ˈbɔːdə /
noun
Usage
What does border mean? A border is the outer edge of a surface or image that marks its boundary in reference to others, such as a border you draw around a picture. A border is also a line that acts as a boundary between two or more geographic areas, whether it’s small areas, like between neighbors on the same street, or large areas, like between countries. To border often means to create a border, as on a picture. To border can also mean to form a border or to be next to one, as in Maine borders New Hampshire to the west and south and Canada to the north and east. Example: The border around the image is quite interesting, but I don’t think it fits the piece.
Synonym Usage
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
bordersimple
-
borderssimple
-
have borderedperfect
-
has borderedperfect
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am borderingprogressive
-
are borderingprogressive
-
is borderingprogressive
-
have been borderingperfect progressive
-
has been borderingperfect progressive
Past
-
borderedsimple
-
had borderedperfect
-
was borderingprogressive
-
were borderingprogressive
-
had been borderingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of border
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English bordure, from Anglo-French, Old French, equivalent to bord(er) “to border” (derivative of bord “ship's side, edge,” from Germanic; see board) + -ure noun suffix; see -ure
Explanation
When you cross a border from one country into another, you'll need to show your identification papers and maybe a visa to the border patrol officials. A border separates one thing from another, most famously countries. Sometimes neighboring countries have border disputes, if they don't think the lines were drawn fairly or if they don't get along. Borders can also be less official. You might want to plant a border of cabbages along your front walk, or you could sew a border of sequins along the edge of your collar. But you'd have to go easy on the sequins, as too many would "border on the garish."
Vocabulary lists containing border
"The Civil Rights Movement"
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The United States
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Commonly Confused Words, List 1
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Palestinian security camera video shared with the BBC showed confrontations between Israeli soldiers and border police and a large crowd of settlers.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
Chutzpah-wise, “Oak Street” stands at the border between brazen and cheeky.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
She urged me to arrive at the airport three or four hours before my return flight and head straight for border control.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
About 20 aid workers were arrested in June near the Iran border in Herat province by Afghanistan's morality police, because their beards were not long enough.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
No, it wasn’t as famous as Mount Hood, across the border in Oregon.
From "I Survived the Eruption of Mount St. Helens, 1980" by Lauren Tarshis
Customs and Border Protection had received just over 252,000 refund applications as of July 31 for tariffs declared unlawful by the Supreme Court.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
Border agents already have the authority to question a foreigner’s reason for applying for a visa or entering the country.
From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026
Border Force had been tipped off about the illegal consignment by the National Crime Agency.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
Border Patrol agents went out with search dogs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026
Many, like Dona Maria, “la curandera,” were caught, herded, and hauled away in the Border Patrol vehicles.
From "The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child" by Francisco Jiménez
In Sakhalin, Putin, 73, held a meeting "on ensuring the security of Russia's eastern borders," RIA Novosti said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 13, 2026
Manipur borders Myanmar, and India's north-east has been flagged as a route for the illegal trade in exotic wildlife, although authorities have not concluded that the gibbons in this case were trafficked.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
U.S. officials allegedly devised the ruse after they became concerned about an Iranian threat to target Trump as he left Turkey, which borders Iran.
From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026
Every few decades since its founding a dark and deadly cycle begins, terrorizing the local community, many of whom are unable to survive beyond the island’s borders.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
“A visit from a fairy broker is a significant event, and carries certain expectations. I’ll concede that the merriment borders on foolishness.”
From "Fablehaven" by Brandon Mull
Another model that Iran and other Persian Gulf nations are examining is in the Strait of Malacca, which like Hormuz is a global energy chokepoint bordered by more than one country.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
At the heart of the dwelling is the “beautifully appointed main residence,” which is bordered by a detached guesthouse, a separate artist’s studio, and a garage with its own bedroom.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 1, 2026
The pre-fight feeling was that this occasion bordered on the absurd as a sanctioned world title contest, but Verhoeven went a long way to proving the boxing fraternity wrong.
From BBC ● May 23, 2026
Models walked down a wide runway set up in Manhattan, bordered by 7th Avenue and Broadway, while its famous billboards broadcast the images.
From Barron's ● May 17, 2026
It stood on a wide boulevard and there were tall trees in front of it and a grassy lawn bordered by flowers.
From "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok
Teenager Jasmine Bernard, who lives in a neighborhood bordering Boxtown, has been fighting for two years against the gas turbines that power the data center and spew emissions into the air.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
Mourners dressed in black gathered on Sunday in the pavilion of Wat Lat Pla Duk in Nonthaburi province, bordering Bangkok, where the body of the slain schoolgirl, Naphat Chaima, lay for a ceremonial bath.
From Barron's ● Aug. 9, 2026
At the Kuchurgan power station, located on the shore of a reservoir bordering Ukraine, she discovers how a facility that once powered a chunk of the former Soviet empire now enables a digital gold rush.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
Perhaps that is why they are loved with something bordering on the religious.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
His appetite, on the other hand, was fierce, sometimes bordering on the violent.
From "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
