Virge

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A slender staff or rod, often symbolic of authority or power
2. An ornamental tapering design, typically used in ecclesiastical contexts
3. A verb meaning to approach or come close to an edge or limit in a figurative sense

Etymology: "Virge" is an obsolete spelling of "verge," and the story runs through a rod of office. In Middle French, "verge" meant a rod or wand of office, and by extension the territory that rod governed. English took that noun from French, and it traces back to Latin "virga," meaning shoot, rod, or stick. The Latin word was a doublet of the noun "virga," meaning the same thing from a different route. The sense of approaching an edge comes from a legal idea. Within the royal household, a zone called "within the verge" stretched about twelve miles around the court and was subject to the Lord High Steward's authority, symbolized by his rod. Over time, "within the verge" shifted from describing that jurisdiction to describing the outer edge of any area, and the verb followed from there. Meanwhile, a separate Latin verb, "vergo," meaning to bend, turn, or incline, also fed into the word. Its influence, reinforced by the noun, is why the verb carries the sense of tending toward a limit.

Synonyms: rod, switch, twig, branch, wand