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knife edge

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noun
  1. the cutting edge of a knife.
  2. anything very sharp.
  3. a wedge on the fine edge of which a scale beam, pendulum, or the like, balances or oscillates.
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Origin of knife edge

First recorded in 1810–20
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

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Examples from the Web for knife edge

Historical Examples

  • A touch of a knife-edge to the rope, and the girl would be saved.

    Out of the Depths

    Robert Ames Bennet

  • Followed by another, he advanced along the knife-edge to their wounded comrade.

  • Her offered, her passive extent, in other words, was about that of a knife-edge.

  • The points of the pins serve as a knife-edge for the rocker.

  • The knife-edge is then turned forward and made to cut its way out.

British Dictionary definitions for knife edge

knife edge

noun
  1. the sharp cutting edge of a knife
  2. any sharp edge
  3. a sharp-edged wedge of hard material on which the beam of a balance pivots or about which a pendulum is suspended
  4. a critical point in the development of a situation, process of making a decision, etc
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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