verge

C2+ Topic:General Vocabulary

US /vɜrdʒ/ UK /vɜːdʒ/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
the edge, border, or brink of something

The company was on the verge of bankruptcy when the rescue came.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the edge, border, or brink... edge brink border margin threshold rim

Opposites

center middle interior

Word family

Related forms vergesconverge diverge

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

verge of despair
the point of almost losing all hope

Fixed expression

Simplified etymology

Verge has two distinct Latin sources. The noun came through Old French from Latin virga, “rod”; after an early anatomical sense, it denoted a ceremonial rod and then a boundary or margin, probably because rods served as boundary markers. The verb meaning “incline toward” comes from Latin vergere, “to bend or incline,” and entered English in the early 17th century.

Etymology

From Old French 'verge' ('rod, staff, measuring stick'), from Latin 'virga' ('shoot, rod, stick'). The sense 'edge, brink' developed from the idea of a rod marking a boundary or extent of jurisdiction.

verge Old French virga Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# verge

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /vɜrdʒ/
**IPA (UK):** /vɜːdʒ/

## Meanings
1. the edge, border, or brink of something

## Examples
- The company was on the verge of bankruptcy when the rescue came.

## Synonyms
- edge
- brink
- border
- margin
- threshold
- rim

## Antonyms
- center
- middle
- interior

## Related Forms
- verges
- converge
- diverge

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: verge
- Root: virga

## Etymology
From Old French 'verge' ('rod, staff, measuring stick'), from Latin 'virga' ('shoot, rod, stick'). The sense 'edge, brink' developed from the idea of a rod marking a boundary or extent of jurisdiction.

## AI Etymology
Verge comes from Old French 'verge' ('rod, staff, measuring stick'), from Latin 'virga' ('shoot, rod, stick'). The sense 'edge, brink' developed from the idea of a rod marking a boundary or extent of jurisdiction. In current use it is a noun and verb meaning "the edge, border, or brink of something". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The history is mainly one of transmission into English, with the older form and sense carried through borrowing or adaptation. The historical chain includes Old French verge and Latin virga. Related English forms include verges, converge, and diverge. The semantic development is therefore important as well as the form: the word moves from the older concrete, technical, or literal setting into the present figurative or specialized sense.

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

markdown