fringe

[ frinj ]

/ frɪndʒ /

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See synonyms for: fringe / fringed / fringes / fringing on Thesaurus.com

noun

a decorative border of thread, cord, or the like, usually hanging loosely from a raveled edge or separate strip.

anything resembling or suggesting this: a fringe of grass around a swimming pool.

an outer edge; margin; periphery: on the fringe of the art world.

something regarded as peripheral, marginal, secondary, or extreme in relation to something else: the lunatic fringe of a strong political party.

Optics. one of the alternate light and dark bands produced by diffraction or interference.

fringe benefit.

verb (used with object), fringed, fring·ing.

to furnish with or as if with a fringe.

to serve as a fringe for, or to be arranged around or along so as to suggest a fringe: armed guards fringing the building.

OTHER WORDS FOR fringe

2 edge, border, skirt, rim.

See synonyms for fringe on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ

There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!

Question 1 of 7

True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

true

false

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of fringe

1325–75; Middle English frenge<Old French (French frange) <Vulgar Latin *frimbia, metathetic variant of Late Latin fimbria,Latin fimbriae fringe

OTHER WORDS FROM fringe

fringeless, adjectivefringelike, adjectivefringy, adjectiveun·der·fringe, noun

un·fringe, verb (used with object), un·fringed, un·fring·ing.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use fringe in a sentence

It’s moving forward with a set of laws that would protect a person’s ability to work from home when possible, turning what was once a fringe benefit into a personal right.
Germany is drafting a law to protect your right to work from home—and still have a life|Lila MacLellan|October 7, 2020|Quartz
Facebook announced on Tuesday it would ban all accounts, pages and groups representing the fringe conspiracy theory QAnon from its platforms.
Facebook bans QAnon across all its platforms|Axios|October 6, 2020|Axios
If it’s placed somewhere else, a fringe site or a publication, then it can exist.
Why security experts are braced for the next election hack-and-leak|Bobbie Johnson|September 29, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Nearly two blocks later, on the fringe of the clinic campus, Ramos saw police lights in her rearview mirror and pulled over.
The Startling Reach and Disparate Impact of Cleveland Clinic’s Private Police Force|by David Armstrong|September 28, 2020|ProPublica

Social-networking platforms should also change their metrics and design their algorithms to stop rewarding the spread of fringe content and to flag what is clearly false.
Brazil’s “fake news” bill won’t solve its misinformation problem|Amy Nordrum|September 10, 2020|MIT Technology Review
It has faded from pixelated gray to rusted ochre, fringed on the edges with black sweat grease.
Whatever You Do Someone Will Die. A Short Story About Impossible Choices in Iraq|Nathan Bradley Bethea|August 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The guest wore the same distinctive fringed Missoni coat—from 2010—that Kate has worn on numerous occasions.
Ultimate Fashion Embarrassment As Wedding Guest Wears Same Outfit as Kate|Tom Sykes|March 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The collection includes leather pants, fringed boots, silk t-shirts, and wool blazers.
Isabel Marant Lands at H&M; Burberry Breaks $1 Billion|The Fashion Beast Team|November 14, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The coast of Spain inspired some summery sentiments in Wang: hot pants and fabulous vinyl, fringed sandals and hats.
Alexander Wang’s Resort Debut for Balenciaga|Alice Cavanagh|June 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
This makes you quite the culture vulture, wanting to expose yourself to artistic, culinary and socially fringed experiences.
Zodiac Beast: April 24-30|Starsky + Cox|April 23, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Ibrahim was standing there, peeping out whimsically from his fringed and tasselled wrappings, and smoking a cigarette.
Bella Donna|Robert Hichens
The banks of the river are flat, and fringed with underwood and young trees; the background is formed by ranges of hills.
A Woman's Journey Round the World|Ida Pfeiffer
The coast is fringed with an uninterrupted line of breakers.
Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia] [Volume 2 of 2]|Phillip Parker King
According to Peron, the animals of this coral are furnished with green-fringed tentacula.
Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia] [Volume 2 of 2]|Phillip Parker King
He was then attired picturesquely in a fringed deerskin jacket dressed by some of the Blackfeet across the Rockies.
The Gold Trail|Harold Bindloss

British Dictionary definitions for fringe

fringe

/ (frɪndʒ) /

noun

an edging consisting of hanging threads, tassels, etc

an outer edge; periphery
(as modifier)fringe dwellers; a fringe area

(modifier) unofficial; not conventional in formfringe theatre

mainly British a section of the front hair cut short over the forehead

an ornamental border or margin

physics any of the light and dark or coloured bands produced by diffraction or interference of light

verb (tr)

to adorn or fit with a fringe or fringes

to be a fringe forfur fringes the satin

Derived forms of fringe

fringeless, adjective

Word Origin for fringe

C14: from Old French frenge, ultimately from Latin fimbria fringe, border; see fimbria

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

fringe

OTHER WORDS FOR fringe

Origin of fringe

OTHER WORDS FROM fringe

Words related to fringe

How to use fringe in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for fringe

Derived forms of fringe

Word Origin for fringe