brink

[ bringk ]

/ brɪŋk /

noun

the edge or margin of a steep place or of land bordering water.

any extreme edge; verge.

a crucial or critical point, especially of a situation or state beyond which success or catastrophe occurs: We were on the brink of war.

Words nearby brink

bring up to date, bring-and-buy sale, bringdown, bringing-up, brinjal, brink, brinkley, brinkman, brinkmanship, brinnin, brinny

Origin of brink

1250–1300; Middle English brink < Old Norse (Danish) brink, cognate with MLG brink edge, hillside, Old Norse brekka slope, hill

OTHER WORDS FROM brink

brink·less, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for brink

She was sexually and verbally abused, leading her to the brink of suicide.
A Quorum For Change: The Fight For Global LGBT Equality|Justin Jones|December 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Emergent procedures provide their benefit right away and have the awesome potential to rescue a patient from the brink of death.
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Risky Heart Surgery|Dr. Anand Veeravagu, MD|November 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It is conceivable, if highly unlikely, that most Palestinians will try to pull back from the brink.
Intifada 3.0: Growing Unrest and a Plot to Kill an Israeli Minister|Creede Newton|November 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Meanwhile, their Missouri hometown appears to be on the brink of chaos.
Riot Prep Could Fuel Ferguson Violence|Caitlin Dickson|November 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST

But things were once a lot closer to the brink than most people knew.
I Saw Nuclear Armageddon Sitting on My Desk|Clive Irving|November 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She has even borrowed small sums from divers prisoners, who were themselves on the brink of starving.
The Adventures of Sir Launcelot Greaves|Tobias Smollett
When I had pulled myself over the brink at his side I grasped his hand and pressed it without a word.
The Moon Metal|Garrett P. Serviss
He had the exaltation of one on the brink of great discovery.
Old Mole|Gilbert Cannan
Their own bucket, improvised out of a dish-cover and a rope, lay close to the brink.
The Wings of the Morning|Louis Tracy
The reader will feel how rapidly I was advancing to the brink of the precipice.
Caleb Williams|William Godwin

British Dictionary definitions for brink

brink

/ (brɪŋk) /

noun

the edge, border, or verge of a steep placethe brink of the precipice

the highest point; topthe sun fell below the brink of the hill

the land at the edge of a body of water

the verge of an event or statethe brink of disaster

Word Origin for brink

C13: from Middle Dutch brinc, of Germanic origin; compare Old Norse brekka slope, Middle Low German brink edge of a field

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

brink

noun

Words related to brink

Words nearby brink

Origin of brink

OTHER WORDS FROM brink

Examples from the Web for brink

British Dictionary definitions for brink

noun

Word Origin for brink