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Definition of edge verb from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

edge

verb
 
/edʒ/
 
/edʒ/
Verb Forms
present simple I / you / we / they edge
 
/edʒ/
 
/edʒ/
he / she / it edges
 
/ˈedʒɪz/
 
/ˈedʒɪz/
past simple edged
 
/edʒd/
 
/edʒd/
past participle edged
 
/edʒd/
 
/edʒd/
-ing form edging
 
/ˈedʒɪŋ/
 
/ˈedʒɪŋ/
Phrasal Verbs
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  1. [intransitive, transitive] to move or to move something slowly and carefully in a particular direction
    • + adv./prep. She edged a little closer to me.
    • I edged nervously past the dog.
    • edge something + adv./prep. Emily edged her chair forward.
    Extra Examples
    • He drew level and for a moment edged ahead of his rival.
    • She edged carefully along the narrow ledge.
    • I edged gingerly down the rocky track.
    • Heaton began to edge away from Jed and headed for the stairs.
    • We slowly edged our way towards the exit.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb
    • carefully
    • cautiously
    • nervously
    preposition
    • ahead of
    • along
    • away from
    phrases
    • edge your way
    See full entry
  2. [transitive, usually passive] to put something around the edge of something
    • be edged (with/in something) The handkerchief is edged with lace.
  3. [intransitive] + adv./prep. to increase or decrease slightly
    • Prices edged up 2 per cent in the year to December.
    Topics Change, cause and effectc2
  4. Word OriginOld English ecg ‘sharpened side of a blade’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch egge and German Ecke, also to Old Norse eggja ‘incite’, from an Indo-European root shared by Latin acies ‘edge’ and Greek akis ‘point’.
See edge in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
alloy
noun
 
 
From the Topic
Physics and chemistry
C2
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