edging

Pluraledgings

1. 1
   nouncountable or uncountable

   A border, strip, or trim that forms or marks the boundary of something.

   Like the decorative trim sewn around the rim of a carpet.

   The gardener installed metal edging to separate the lawn from the path.

   A neat lace edging finished the hem of the tablecloth.

   Similarborder, trim, trimming, fringe, binding

   Note

   A word that works both as a material and as a single finished item. Uncountable, it names the stuff itself: rubber edging, which Railway Magazine described being fitted to London Transport doors in 1951. Countable, it names one particular border, as in a lace edging. The material or style usually comes first in the phrase: metal edging, decorative edging, rubber edging.

2. 2
   verb

   Present participle of edge.

   The crowd was edging closer to the stage as the band tuned up.

   He spent the morning edging the lawn along the driveway.

   Note

   One spelling carries every verb sense of edge: creeping forward (the crowd was edging closer), winning by a narrow margin, nicking a cricket ball off the bat, and trimming a lawn. As a gerund it can head a noun phrase (edging the lawn takes an hour). That is where it shades into the noun for a border, since a gardener edging a bed is often putting in edging.

3. 3
   noununcountable

   The sexual practice of sustaining a high level of arousal for an extended period while deliberately avoiding orgasm.

   He practiced edging to prolong the encounter.

   She found that edging heightened the sensation considerably.

4. 4
   noununcountable

   The operation of shaping or dressing the edge of an object, such as a piece of metal.

   The factory uses a grinding wheel for edging the steel panels.

   Careful edging removed every burr from the cut aluminum.

   Similartrimming, dressing, finishing

5. 5
   noununcountable

   A climbing technique that relies on placing the edge of the shoe's sole against a small, sharp hold.

   The route demanded precise edging on a series of razor-thin ledges.

   Edging works best with stiff-soled shoes that support the foot.

   Note

   Climbers use it for footwork that depends on exactly which part of the shoe meets the rock. The climber weights the inner or outer edge against a small, sharp hold and trusts the shoe's rigidity rather than friction across the whole sole. That is why stiff-soled shoes suit it. As a skill it is usually uncountable (her edging is precise).

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