verge

[ vurj ]

/ vɜrdʒ /

See synonyms for verge on Thesaurus.com

noun

the edge, rim, or margin of something: the verge of a desert; to operate on the verge of fraud.

the limit or point beyond which something begins or occurs; brink: on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

a limiting belt, strip, or border of something.

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

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

limited room or scope for something: an action within the verge of one's abilities.

an area or district subject to a particular jurisdiction.

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

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

Architecture. the shaft of a column or colonette.

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

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

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

verb (used without object), verged, verg·ing.

to be on the edge or margin; border: Our property verges on theirs.

to come close to or be in transition to some state, quality, etc. (usually followed by on): a statesman who verged on greatness; a situation that verged on disaster.

verb (used with object), verged, verg·ing.

to serve as the verge or boundary of: a high hedge verging the yard.

SYNONYMS FOR verge

1 brim, lip, brink.

See synonyms for verge on Thesaurus.com

QUIZZES

THIS PSAT VOCABULARY QUIZ IS PERFECT PRACTICE FOR THE REAL TEST

In our third teacher-created PSAT practice test there are new and unique vocabulary terms you may have never heard of! Can you guess what they mean?

Question 1 of 10

seclusion

a false belief or opinion.

the matter that settles to the bottom of a liquid.

the state of being isolated, kept apart, or withdrawn into solitude.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of verge

1350–1400; late Middle English: shaft, column, rod (hence boundary or jurisdiction symbolized by a steward's rod), Middle English: penis <Middle French: rod <Latin virga

Definition for verge (2 of 2)

verge²

[ vurj ]

/ vɜrdʒ /

verb (used without object), verged, verg·ing.

to incline; tend (usually followed by to or toward): The economy verges toward inflation.

to slope or sink.

Origin of verge

First recorded in 1600–10, verge is from the Latin word vergere to turn, bend, be inclined

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for verge

Luminar, the buzzy sensor startup that is on the verge of becoming a publicly traded company, locked in a supplier deal to furnish Intel subsidiary Mobileye with lidar for its fleet of autonomous vehicles.
Mobileye taps Luminar to supply lidar for its robotaxi fleet|Kirsten Korosec|November 20, 2020|TechCrunch
Washington could be on the verge of a seismic shift in power as final votes are being tallied in the presidential election, but the dynamics around economic relief talks that have sputtered on and off for months do not appear to have changed.
Stimulus talks set to resume in Washington, but Pelosi and McConnell are at odds again|Erica Werner|November 6, 2020|Washington Post
With the Penn State men’s basketball team on the verge of making the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2011, Lucchesi predicted this would be the best year yet.
Football is back in Happy Valley. The coronavirus never left.|Kent Babb|October 30, 2020|Washington Post
Over the course of three hours, the drivers took control more than a dozen times, including at least two cases when the car seemed to be on the verge of crashing into another vehicle.
“Oh Jeeeesus”: Drivers react to Tesla’s full self-driving beta release|Timothy B. Lee|October 30, 2020|Ars Technica

Finally, there’s a category of interventions that might be marginally useful but verge on pandemic theater.
How to make restaurants safer during the pandemic|Charlotte Jee|October 28, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Lapid may be malleable, but Bennett was without question on the hard-right, verging on undemocratic.
A Vote Against Bibi, Not His Policies|Ali Gharib|January 22, 2013|DAILY BEAST
That elegance made some of us worry that his work was verging on slick.
Dinosaur Dysentery|Blake Gopnik|May 21, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Iraq, too, the country “made a democracy” by America, is verging on civil war.
Leslie H. Gelb on a World in Crisis—and What Obama Should Do|Leslie H. Gelb|December 14, 2011|DAILY BEAST
All this surely must mean we are verging on the e-book promised land.
Don't Write Off Books|Peter Osnos|April 7, 2009|DAILY BEAST
Andrew Forsyth, verging on manhood, was required to drink this bitter cup.
Sketches of the Covenanters|J. C. McFeeters
However, I got over this attack, though it must have been verging on something very dangerous.
Confessions of an English Opium-Eater|Thomas De Quincey
Walderhurst fixed his monocle firmly to conceal the fact that he was verging upon a cynical grin.
Emily Fox-Seton|Frances Hodgson Burnett
A look of disappointment, verging on anger crept into his good-natured brown eyes as his daughter deliberately defied him.
The Automobile Girls at Palm Beach|Laura Dent Crane
At last, he thus gets himself into an extreme state of super-excitation, verging on delirium.
The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life|Emile Durkheim

British Dictionary definitions for verge (1 of 2)

verge¹

/ (vɜːdʒ) /

noun

an edge or rim; margin

a limit beyond which something occurs; brinkon the verge of ecstasy

British a grass border along a road

an enclosing line, belt, or strip

architect the edge of the roof tiles projecting over a gable

architect the shaft of a classical column

an enclosed space

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

English legal history

the area encompassing the royal court that is subject to the jurisdiction of the Lord High Steward
a rod or wand carried as a symbol of office or emblem of authority, as in the Church
a rod held by a person swearing fealty to his lord on becoming a tenant, esp of copyhold land

verb

(intr foll by on) to be near (to)to verge on chaos

(when intr, sometimes foll by on) to serve as the edge of (something)this narrow strip verges the road

Word Origin for verge

C15: from Old French, from Latin virga rod

British Dictionary definitions for verge (2 of 2)

verge²

/ (vɜːdʒ) /

verb

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

Word Origin for verge

C17: from Latin vergere

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

Medical definitions for verge

verge

[ vûrj ]

n.

The extreme edge or margin; a border.

Idioms and Phrases with verge

verge

In addition to the idiom beginning with verge

verge on

also see:

on the verge of

MEANINGS

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verge

noun

verb (used without object), verged, verg·ing.

verb (used with object), verged, verg·ing.

SYNONYMS FOR verge

QUIZZES

THIS PSAT VOCABULARY QUIZ IS PERFECT PRACTICE FOR THE REAL TEST

Origin of verge

Definition for verge (2 of 2)

verb (used without object), verged, verg·ing.

Origin of verge

Example sentences from the Web for verge

British Dictionary definitions for verge (1 of 2)

noun

verb

Word Origin for verge

British Dictionary definitions for verge (2 of 2)

verb

Word Origin for verge

Medical definitions for verge

n.

Idioms and Phrases with verge

MEANINGS

WORD GAMES

LEARN

WRITING

WORD OF THE DAY

verge

noun

verb (used without object), verged, verg·ing.

verb (used with object), verged, verg·ing.

SYNONYMS FOR verge

QUIZZES

THIS PSAT VOCABULARY QUIZ IS PERFECT PRACTICE FOR THE REAL TEST

Origin of verge

Definition for verge (2 of 2)

verb (used without object), verged, verg·ing.

Origin of verge

Words related to verge

Example sentences from the Web for verge

British Dictionary definitions for verge (1 of 2)

noun

verb

Word Origin for verge

British Dictionary definitions for verge (2 of 2)

verb

Word Origin for verge

Medical definitions for verge

n.

Idioms and Phrases with verge