Meanings
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1
noun
a tapered piece used for splitting, tightening, lifting, or securing something
She pushed a wooden wedge beneath the door to keep it open.
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2
noun
a piece or mass shaped like a narrow triangle in cross-section
He served each guest a wedge of cheese.
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3
noun
something that creates or deepens a division between people or groups
The dispute drove a wedge between the former partners.
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4
verb
to force into a narrow space, or to secure something tightly with a wedge
She wedged the parcel between the seat and the door.
Thesaurus
Etymology
From Middle English wegge, inherited from Old English weċġ ("wedge"), from Proto-West Germanic *wagi and Proto-Germanic *wagjaz. The figurative sense preserves the physical tool's action: a wedge driven between things separates them.