verge

¹ American  

[vurj] / vɜrdʒ /

noun

• verges
  plural

1. the edge, rim, or margin of something.

   the verge of a desert; to operate on the verge of fraud.

   Synonyms:

   brink, lip, brim

2. the limit or point beyond which something begins or occurs; brink.

   on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

3. a limiting belt, strip, or border of something.

4. British. a narrow strip of turf bordering on a pathway, sidewalk, roadway, etc.

5. a decorative border, as on or around an object, structural part, etc.

6. limited room or scope for something.

   an action within the verge of one's abilities.

7. an area or district subject to a particular jurisdiction.

8. History/Historical. an area or district in England embracing the royal palace, being the jurisdiction of the Marshalsea Court.

9. the part of a sloping roof that projects beyond the gable wall.

10. Architecture. the shaft of a column or colonette.

11. a rod, wand, or staff, especially one carried as an emblem of authority or of the office of a bishop, dean, or the like.

12. Horology. a palletlike lever formerly used in inexpensive pendulum clocks.

13. Obsolete. a stick or wand held in the hand of a person swearing fealty to a feudal lord on being admitted as a tenant.

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verb (used without object)

verged, verging

1. to be on the edge or margin; border.

   Our property verges on theirs.

2. to come close to or be in transition to some state, quality, etc. (usually followed byon ).

   a statesman who verged on greatness; a situation that verged on disaster.

verb (used with object)

verged, verging

1. to serve as the verge or boundary of.

   a high hedge verging the yard.

verge ² American  

[vurj] / vɜrdʒ /

verb (used without object)

verged, verging

1. to incline; tend (usually followed by to ortoward ).

   The economy verges toward inflation.

2. to slope or sink.

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verge ¹ British  

/ vɜːdʒ /

noun

1. an edge or rim; margin

2. a limit beyond which something occurs; brink

   on the verge of ecstasy

3. a grass border along a road

4. an enclosing line, belt, or strip

5. architect the edge of the roof tiles projecting over a gable

6. architect the shaft of a classical column

7. an enclosed space

8. horology the spindle of a balance wheel in a vertical escapement, found only in very early clocks

9. English legal history

   1. the area encompassing the royal court that is subject to the jurisdiction of the Lord High Steward

   2. a rod or wand carried as a symbol of office or emblem of authority, as in the Church

   3. a rod held by a person swearing fealty to his lord on becoming a tenant, esp of copyhold land

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verb

1. to be near (to)

   to verge on chaos

2. to serve as the edge of (something)

   this narrow strip verges the road

verge ² British  

/ vɜːdʒ /

verb

1. (intr; foll by to or towards) to move or incline in a certain direction

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verge Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing verge

• on the verge of

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• verges
  plural

Etymology

Origin of verge¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English virge, verge “shaft, column, rod (hence boundary or jurisdiction symbolized by a steward's rod), rod of office, penis,” from Middle French, from Latin virga “shoot, twig, branch, rod”

Origin of verge²

First recorded in 1600–10; from Latin vergere “to turn, bend, be inclined”

Explanation

Think of an edge, a border, a boundary, and you are thinking about the verge, the point where something begins or ends. We talk about a nervous person being on the verge of a breakdown, or about a scientist being on the verge of a major breakthrough, but the British have another good physical meaning: they call the strip of grass that borders a walkway the verge, giving you a clear mental picture that goes beyond the abstract.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

verge verges verged verging

Barcelona's latest Rodri bid rejected, Tottenham's Djed Spence on verge of Inter Milan move, Arsenal rebuffed in bid for Marc Pubill, plus more.

From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026

Tattoo artist Andres Hernandez said he was worried about his family and friends, adding that he would stay awake because structures around him were "on the verge of collapsing."

From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026

Aston Villa manager David O'Leary admitted his side were "on the verge" of being part of a cup shock when they faced Wycombe Wanderers in 2005.

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026

They say Snell and Glasnow are both on the verge of returning from what has essentially been season-long injuries.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 2, 2026

His eyes were closed, but he scowled so deeply he appeared to be on the verge of a bloodcurdling war cry.

From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan

"We selected some sites that we wanted to try and create meadows on, and we wanted to create some verges," he said.

From BBC ● Jun. 10, 2026

"When you walk past the verges and see them all being left as they should be, it's brilliant," Taylor said.

From BBC ● Jun. 10, 2026

And at times “Kenrex” verges on caricature in its depiction of rural life as a lawless Wild Midwest, garnished by such down-home delicacies as “a deep fried barbecue chili cheese dog with bacon crumbles.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026

As he’s classically rendered, Soames verges on unpalatable.

From Salon ● Mar. 28, 2026

Hedgerows and verges were at their rankest and thickest.

From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams

The result in Beijing verged at times towards collective paranoia.

From Barron's ● May 15, 2026

On social media, the schadenfreude has verged on gleeful, with the public picking up on even the smallest references to confirm their priors and their thirst for justice is palpable.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 7, 2026

Some people’s fascination with Gein even verged into fandom, according to Hamish McAlpine, producer of the 2000 film “Ed Gein.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2025

England's gluttonous run-scoring on the opening day verged on tedium because of its one-sided nature.

From BBC ● May 23, 2025

Ophelia thought that Paul’s personality was built of oppositions—a need for frenzied activity that verged, she thought, on desperation, and a towering self-confidence oddly combined with a hunger for affirmation.

From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French

The re-created history, which is where many historical documentaries fail, looks good, and the scenes the writers conjure up are well done, if verging sometimes on melodrama.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026

Former scrum-half Matt Dawson described England's discipline as "verging on comical" after their number of yellow cards for the year reached 14 in the chaotic 31-24 controversial win over Argentina.

From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026

A consistent message emerged: Los Angeles was not a beautiful, vibrant metropolis with serious problems, but a hellhole verging on being lost for good.

From Slate ● Jun. 9, 2026

Sear the thighs skin-side down in a wide skillet until the fat renders and the skin turns deeply golden, verging on bronze.

From Salon ● Feb. 24, 2026

My chance of survival was bleak, verging on nonexistent.

From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda

Related Words

• brink
• edge
• fringe
• threshold