edge

Pluraledges

Formsedges, edging, edged

1. 1
   where it endsnouncountable

   The outside limit or border of an object, surface, or area; the line or brink where it ends, as at the top of a cliff.

   The cat has scratched the edge of the rug until it's badly frayed.

   The photo was cropped right up to the edges of the frame.

   UsageUsually the edge of something: on the edge of a cliff, at the edge of the table.

   Similarborder, rim, margin, brink, boundary

   Oppositecenter, middle, interior

2. 2
   vergenouncountable

   The boundary of something or the area immediately beside it, or the beginning or early portion of a period of time.

   On the edge of dawn, the birds began to sing.

   The shop stood at the edge of the old district.

   UsageCommon with places: at the edge of town, on the edge of the forest.

   Similarfringe, border, verge, threshold

   Oppositecenter, heart

   Note

   Time borrows the spatial border here: on the edge of winter, in the edge of evening. In Milton's History of Britain, an enemy gambles that a new general, caught on the edge of winter, will not hurry to fight. The phrase points to the threshold of a period, its first approach rather than its close, so the edge of dawn is the moment dawn begins. Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

   • John Milton wrote History of Britain. tianmu.org
   • Milton describes enemies expecting a new general, at the approach of winter, not to oppose them hastily. tianmu.org
3. 3
   advantagenouncountable

   An advantage, especially a slight one held over a competitor.

   The startup's new technology gave it an edge in a crowded market.

   Experience gave the veteran climber an edge on the difficult route.

   UsageUsually have the edge on or over someone, give someone an edge, or lose your edge.

   Similaradvantage, lead

   Oppositedisadvantage, handicap

4. 4
   sharp sidenounfigurativelycountable

   The thin cutting side of a blade, as on an ax, knife, sword, or scythe; by extension, anything that cuts or wounds deeply.

   The sword's edge had been honed to a deadly sharpness.

   She tested the edge of the ax against her thumbnail.

   Similarblade

   Note

   A blade's edge is literal. Shakespeare's slander "whose edge is sharper than the sword," in Cymbeline, takes the figurative step. Today the figure has loosened further, so a city can have "just the right amount of edge": a little bite, not danger. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

   • The quotation occurs in Shakespeare's Cymbeline, where Pisanio describes slander figuratively. folger.edu
   • The city quotation is attested. theguardian.com
5. 5
   win narrowlyverbtransitive

   To beat an opponent or rival by a narrow margin.

   The challenger edged the champion in a thrilling finish.

   They edge their opponents whenever the game comes down to the wire.

   UsageOften with just or out: just edged the champion, edged out a rival.

   Similarpip, beat

   Note

   The winner gets ahead by no more than an edge, a small lead of the kind the "advantage" sense describes, here turned into an action: one runner edges another at the tape.

6. 6
   move slowlyverbintransitive

   To move, or move something, slowly and carefully in a particular direction.

   The climbers edged along the narrow ledge one at a time.

   I edge forward in the line, inch by inch, as the doors open.

   UsageOften with a direction word: edge along, edge forward, edge towards the door.

   Similarinch, creep, sidle, shuffle, ease

   Note

   It stretches easily to progress that is not physical. Phil McNulty's 2011 BBC Sport report has a footballer "edging slowly towards full fitness." Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

   • Phil McNulty's BBC Sport report dates from 2011. en.wiktionary.org
   • The report describes footballer Carroll as “edging slowly towards full fitness.” en.wiktionary.org
7. 7
   line (solid shape)nouncountable

   The line where two faces of a solid shape meet, or a side of a polygon, which joins two neighboring corners.

   A tetrahedron has six edges connecting its four vertices.

   Every edge of the polygon joins two adjacent corners.

   Similarside

   Note

   Geometers treat it as one rung on a ladder of dimensions: a vertex is a point, an edge is one-dimensional, a face two-dimensional. The term holds in any number of dimensions, so a four-dimensional polytope has edges too. An edge here is a line segment with length. In the graph-theory sense it is only a pairing of two vertices, with no shape at all. Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 5 facts

   • A vertex is a point. en.wikipedia.org
   • An edge is one-dimensional. kam.mff.cuni.cz
   • In the dimensional terminology used here, a face is two-dimensional. en.wikipedia.org
   • Geometric edges are line segments, including in higher-dimensional polytopes such as four-dimensional polytopes. en.wikipedia.org
   • A graph edge records a connection between vertices without an inherent geometric shape. en.wikipedia.org
8. 8
   sharpnessnouncountable

   Sharpness or keenness; the readiness or fitness to cut; also an intense, eager desire.

   The chisel kept its edge even after heavy use.

   Her ambition had a fierce edge that drove her forward.

   UsageCommon in keep its edge, lose its edge and take the edge off something.

   Similarsharpness, keenness, bite, intensity

   Oppositedullness, bluntness

   Note

   Sharpness becomes a quality that can be added, kept or aimed. Jeremy Taylor warns that our fears "set an edge upon" death and persecution, and Walter Scott's Ivanhoe turns "the full edge of our indignation" upon its target. Both treat feeling as a blade being honed or pointed. The same picture lies behind the verb for goading and behind a chisel that keeps its edge. Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

   • Jeremy Taylor writes that fears can sharpen the harm of death and persecution, using the words “set an edge upon”. en.wiktionary.org
   • Walter Scott's Ivanhoe contains “the full edge of our indignation”, directed against a target. The speaker is the Grand Master. gutenberg.org
9. 9
   add borderverbtransitive

   To form or provide a border along the edge of something.

   Tailors edge the collar with a thin strip of leather.

   He edged the path with bricks to keep the gravel in place.

   UsagePattern: edge something with a material: edge a path with bricks.

   Similarborder, trim, line, fringe, hem

   Note

   The construction to know is edge with: you edge a path with bricks, a collar with leather. The material comes after with, and the thing being bordered is the object. That object can drop away entirely, as in Paige Gilchrist's The Big Book of Backyard Projects (2005): "If you're edging with stone, brick, or another material." The finished border is an edging. Source

   Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 2 facts

   • The Big Book of Backyard Projects is attributed to Paige Gilchrist. en.wiktionary.org
   • The quoted words occur in the book, with no direct object after “edging”; the original sentence continues after “material”. en.wiktionary.org
10. 10
    local computingnounbefore a noun

    The point where data is produced within an organization, near its source, rather than in the cloud.

    Processing sensor data at the edge reduces the load on central servers.

    Smart cameras now run their analysis at the edge instead of uploading every frame.

    UsageOften at the edge, and in edge computing and edge devices.

    Oppositecloud

    Note

    Computing uses it as the counterpart of the cloud. The edge is where data originates, in sensors, cameras and local machines, and edge computing processes it there before results travel on. Sergio Mendez's Edge Computing Systems with Kubernetes (2022) speaks of data "processed on edge devices before the result goes to its destination." Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 5 facts

    • The edge includes data sources such as sensors, cameras and local machines. cisco.com
    • Edge computing processes data locally, close to its source. blogs.nvidia.com
    • Sergio Mendez wrote Edge Computing Systems with Kubernetes. packtpub.com
    • The book was first published in 2022. packtpub.com
    • The quoted wording appears in Mendez's book. packtpub.com
11. 11
    graph linknouncountable

    A connection between two vertices in a graph.

    A path is a sequence of edges connecting one vertex to another.

    Adding an edge between two nodes creates a new connection in the graph.

    Similarlink, arc

    Note

    Graph theory keeps only the bare idea of a connection. A graph is a set of vertices together with a set of edges, and an edge records only that two vertices are joined. How it is drawn, straight or curved, long or short, means nothing. Paths are built as sequences of edges, and the vertices are often called nodes. Source

    Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts

    • A graph consists of vertices and edges representing connections. web.math.princeton.edu
    • The geometric appearance of a drawing does not determine the abstract graph. en.wikipedia.org
    • Paths consist of sequences of edges. en.wikipedia.org
    • Vertices are also called nodes. en.wikipedia.org

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