Verge

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /vɜːd͡ʒ/

Definitions

1. The edge or border of something, or the point at which something is about to happen
2. The limit or boundary of an object or area, along with the brink or threshold indicating a point of potential change or action
3. A boundary line or margin of a physical entity, coupled with a critical point where an event is imminent or likely to occur

Etymology: In the royal court of medieval England, the "verge" was a rod carried as a symbol of authority. Anyone within the verge fell under the Lord High Steward's jurisdiction, a zone originally measured as a 12-mile radius around the king's household. The word for that rod came into English from Middle French, where "verge" meant a rod or wand of office, and it is a doublet of the Latin "virga," meaning shoot or rod. Over time the sense of being "within the verge" shifted from the area of authority to its outermost limit, so that "verge" came to mean the edge or border of an expanse. The modern meaning thus reverses the idea of the centre of power into the margin where it stops. The word also has a second, unrelated-looking root. Latin "vergo" meant "to bend" or "to incline," and English "verge" has been strongly influenced by it, which helps explain how the sense of a boundary drifting toward something else took hold.

Synonyms: border, edge, threshold, brink, limit

Antonyms: center, middle, core, interior, heart