rim
noun
the outer edge, border, margin, or brink of something, especially of a circular object.
rim
American
[rim]
/ rɪm /
noun
-
rims
plural
-
the outer edge, border, margin, or brink of something, especially of a circular object.
- Antonyms:
- center
-
any edge, margin, or frame added to or around a central object or area.
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the outer circle of a wheel, attached to the hub by spokes.
-
a circular strip of metal forming the connection between an automobile wheel and tire, either permanently attached to or removable from the wheel.
-
a drive wheel or flywheel, as on a spinning mule.
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Basketball. the metal ring from which the net is suspended to form the basket.
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Journalism. the outer edge of a usually U -shaped copy desk, occupied by the copyreaders.
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Metallurgy. (in an ingot) an outer layer of metal having a composition different from that of the center.
verb (used with object)
-
rims,
present (3rd person singular)
-
rimmed,
past participle, past
-
rimming
present participle
-
to furnish with a rim, border, or margin.
-
(of a golf ball or putt) to roll around the edge of (a hole) but not go in.
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Basketball. (of a basketball) to roll around (the rim of the basket) and not go in.
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to coat or encrust the rim of (a glass).
Rim each cocktail glass with salt.
rim
1
British
/ rɪm /
noun
-
the raised edge of an object, esp of something more or less circular such as a cup or crater
-
the peripheral part of a wheel, to which the tyre is attached
-
basketball the hoop from which the net is suspended
verb
-
to put a rim on (a pot, cup, wheel, etc)
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slang to lick, kiss, or suck the anus of (one's sexual partner)
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ball games (of a ball) to run around the edge of (a hole, basket, etc)
RIM
2
British
abbreviation
Synonym Usage
Rim, brim refer to the boundary of a circular or curved area. A rim is a line or surface bounding such an area; an edge or border: the rim of a glass. Brim usually means the inside of the rim, at the top of a hollow object (except of a hat), and is used particularly when the object contains something: The cup was filled to the brim.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
rimsimple
-
rimssimple
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have rimmedperfect
-
has rimmedperfect
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am rimmingprogressive
-
are rimmingprogressive
-
is rimmingprogressive
-
have been rimmingperfect progressive
-
has been rimmingperfect progressive
Past
-
rimmedsimple
-
had rimmedperfect
-
was rimmingprogressive
-
were rimmingprogressive
-
had been rimmingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of rim
First recorded before 1150; Middle English; Old English -rima (in compounds); cognate with Old Norse rimi “raised strip of land, ridge”
Explanation
A rim is an edge. The rim of a mug is where you put your mouth to drink hot chocolate, and the rim holding a basketball net is where you're aiming when you shoot the ball. People often use the word rim for the lip of a cup or bowl. You can also use the word rim for the circle at the top of a basketball hoop. There's also the rim of a wheel — the part the tire is attached to — and the rim of your eyeglasses. Rim comes from the Old English rima, "edge," which appears in the Old English word særima, "seashore," or "rim of the sea."
Vocabulary lists containing rim
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:
Here, too, the Germans enjoyed early success, driving the British and their Commonwealth forces some 350 miles across the rim of Africa, from their stronghold outside Tobruk, Libya to western Egypt.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026
In response, crews reportedly used hydrogen peroxide treatments to address water quality issues, restoring just the outer rim of the pool to its blue coloration while leaving other areas still very green in appearance.
From Salon ● Jun. 19, 2026
Anunoby then made a block with 11.1 seconds left, to stop the Spurs leading 108-105, before tipping in the game-clinching score after Brunson's three-point attempt struck the rim.
From BBC ● Jun. 11, 2026
Jalen Brunson scored 36 points and Anunoby added 33 for New York, putting in the game-winner off Brunson's three-point attempt that struck the rim.
From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026
Dunwing popped her head over the rim of the nest.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
After the acquisition in 2010, many engineers moved over to RIM to build a mobile operating system for the BlackBerry.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
Recently fired and fired up, Jim sees the device’s potential, making a deal to acquire part of RIM in exchange for cash and expertise.
From New York Times ● May 11, 2023
Both Balsillie and Lazaridis left RIM in 2012.
From Seattle Times ● May 10, 2023
Mr. Balsillie’s first thought was RIM was losing AT&T as a customer.
From Forbes ● May 26, 2015
Jim Estill, member of the board, 1997-2010: In the early days at RIM, people had no idea what a smartphone was.
From BusinessWeek ● Dec. 5, 2013
The arms are forged from motorbike springs and gears, its shoulders are curve from car rims, the spine is moulded from a fuel tank and its knees are pieced together with chains and suspension parts.
From Barron's ● Feb. 26, 2026
Water gathered in low-lying valleys and river channels, overflowed crater rims, and rushed through canyons.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 31, 2025
Tyres will retain 18-inch wheel rims, but the tyres themselves will be narrower, by 25mm at the front and 30mm at the rear.
From BBC ● Dec. 17, 2025
Though Real Madrid would shape him into the best young player in Europe, Doncic believes the foundations of his game were set earlier, in Slovenia, on the playground, outside, on crooked rims, without adults hovering.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2025
Everything was in a state of disarray—sewing projects abandoned upon the spinnet, shutters drawn, dogs sleeping on the settee, dirty plates and platters still lain on the table, the food crusted to their rims.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
Heat the oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
From Salon ● Jul. 20, 2026
From almost any vantage point, the Salton Sea appears lifeless — a gray expanse rimmed with salt and windblown dust.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 7, 2026
Except for one picked cuticle on a fingernail, which was ever so slightly rimmed with blood.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2025
He wore a black t-shirt, dark trousers and black rimmed glasses as he entered his pleas.
From BBC ● Feb. 24, 2025
My foul shot rimmed the basket and fell in.
From "Slam!" by Walter Dean Myers
Beyond the museum, the grassy hills rimming the building will also be expanded and extended because Angelenos—children and adults—have a beloved tradition of rolling down them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 22, 2026
Beside her, Ryder, gray hairs rimming his eyes, cropped grass on the lawn of his new home, untethered and, without a fence around him, free.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 21, 2022
There’s no game plan that will get Randle’s shots to stop rimming out if he’s open.
From New York Times ● Jan. 13, 2022
And even though the Lakers lost 123-120 to the Kings, the undermanned roster challenged throughout the game, a potential game-winning layup rimming out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 4, 2021
We loaded up and were off as the sun gilded the tops of the scrubby bushes rimming the dell, Estraven pulling in harness and I as pusher and rudder at the stern.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
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.
