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margin
10 dictionary results for: Margin
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
mar·gin       [mahr-jin] Pronunciation Key
–noun
1.the space around the printed or written matter on a page.
2.an amount allowed or available beyond what is actually necessary: to allow a margin for error.
3.a limit in condition, capacity, etc., beyond or below which something ceases to exist, be desirable, or be possible: the margin of endurance; the margin of sanity.
4.a border or edge.
5.Philately. selvage (def. 3).
6.Finance.
a.security, as a percentage in money, deposited with a broker by a client as a provision against loss on transactions.
b.the amount representing the customer's investment or equity in such an account.
7.the difference between the amount of a loan and the market value of the collateral pledged as security for it.
8.Commerce. the difference between the cost and the selling price.
9.an amount or degree of difference: The measure passed by a margin of just three votes.
10.Economics. the point at which the return from economic activity barely covers the cost of production, and below which production is unprofitable.
11.Entomology. the border of an insect's wing.
–verb (used with object)
12.to provide with a margin or border.
13.to furnish with marginal notes, as a document.
14.to enter in the margin, as of a book.
15.Finance. to deposit a margin upon.
16.Stock Exchange. to purchase (securities) on margin: That stock was heavily margined during the last month.
[Origin: 1300–50; ME < L margin- (s. of margō) border; akin to march2]

—Synonyms 3. confine, bound. 4. rim, verge, brink. See edge.
—Antonyms 4. center.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
mar·gin       (mär'jĭn)  Pronunciation Key 
n.  
  1. An edge and the area immediately adjacent to it; a border. See Synonyms at border.
  2. The blank space bordering the written or printed area on a page.
  3. A limit in a condition or process, beyond or below which something is no longer possible or acceptable: the margin of reality; has crossed the margin of civilized behavior.
  4. An amount allowed beyond what is needed: a small margin of safety. See Synonyms at room.
  5. A measure, quantity, or degree of difference: a margin of 500 votes.
  6. Economics
    1. The minimum return that an enterprise may earn and still pay for itself.
    2. The difference between the cost and the selling price of securities or commodities.
    3. The difference between the market value of collateral and the face value of a loan.
  7. An amount in money, or represented by securities, deposited by a customer with a broker as a provision against loss on transactions made on account.
  8. Botany The border of a leaf.

tr.v.   mar·gined, mar·gin·ing, mar·gins
  1. To provide with a margin.
  2. To be a margin to; border.
  3. To inscribe or enter in the margin of a page.
  4. Economics
    1. To add margin to: margin up a brokerage account.
    2. To deposit margin for: margin a transaction.
    3. To buy or hold (securities) by depositing or adding to a margin.


[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin margō, margin-; see merg- in Indo-European roots.]

mar'gined adj.
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
margin 
1362, "space between a block of text and the edge of a page," from L. margo (gen. marginis) "edge," from PIE *mereg- "edge, boundary" (see mark (1)). General sense of "boundary space" is from 1382. Meaning "comfort allowance, cushion" is from 1851; margin of safety first recorded 1888. Stock market sense of "sum deposited with a broker to cover risk of loss" is from 1848. Marginal (1576) originally meant "written on the margin," from M.L. marginalis, from L. margo; sense of "of little effect or importance" first recorded 1887.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
margin

noun
1. the boundary line or the area immediately inside the boundary 
2. an amount beyond the minimum necessary; "the margin of victory" 
3. the amount of collateral a customer deposits with a broker when borrowing from the broker to buy securities 
4. (finance) the net sales minus the cost of goods and services sold [syn: gross profit] 
5. the blank space that surrounds the text on a page; "he jotted a note in the margin" 
6. a permissible difference; allowing some freedom to move within limits [syn: allowance] 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
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American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

margin mar·gin (mär'jĭn)
n.

  1. A border or edge, as of an organ.
  2. A limit in a condition or process, beyond or below which something is no longer possible or acceptable.
  3. An amount that is allowed but that is beyond what is needed.
  4. A measure, quantity, or degree of difference.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Investopedia - Cite This Source - Share This

Margin

1. Borrowed money that is used to purchase securities. This practice is referred to as 'buying on margin'.

2. The amount of equity contributed by a customer as a percentage of the current market value of the securities held in a margin account.

3. In a general business context, the difference between a product's (or service's) selling price and the cost of production. 4. The portion of the interest rate on an adjustable-rate mortgage that is over and above the adjustment-index rate. This portion is retained as profit by the lender.

Investopedia Commentary

1. Buying with borrowed money can be extremely risky because both gains and losses are amplified. That is, while the potential for greater profit exists, this comes at a hefty price -- the potential for greater losses. Margin also subjects the investor to a number of unique risks such as interest payments for use of the borrowed money.

2. For example, if you hold futures contracts in a margin account, you have to maintain a certain amount of margin depending on how the market value of the contracts change.

3. Gross profit margin (which is the difference between revenue and expenses) is one measure of a company's performance.

4. The formula for calculating the interest rate on an adjustable-rate mortgage is the adjustment-index rate (e.g. Treasury Index) plus the percentage of the margin. For example, if the Treasury Index is 6% and the interest rate on the mortgage is 8%, the margin is 2%.

Related Links

Margin Trading Tutorial
The Bottom Line On Margins
How Does Your Margin Grow?
Mortgages: Fixed-Rate Versus Adjustable-Rate

See also: Adjustable-Rate Mortgage - ARM, Broker's Call, Buying Power, Call Loan, Equity, Initial Margin, Maintenance Margin, Margin Account, Margin Call, Minimum Margin, SPAN Margin, Treasury Index

Also spelled: margen

Investopedia.com. Copyright © 1999-2005 - All rights reserved. Owned and Operated by Investopedia Inc.
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Wallstreet Words - Cite This Source - Share This

margin

  1. The amount of funds that must be deposited when purchasing securities. See also initial margin requirement.
  2. The equity in an investor's account. See also maintenance margin requirement.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms for Today's Investor by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law - Cite This Source - Share This
Main Entry: mar·gin
Pronunciation: 'mär-j&n
Function: noun
1 : the difference between net sales and the cost of the merchandise sold from which expenses are usually met or profits derived
2 : the amount by which the market value of collateral is greater than the face value of a loan
3 a : cash or collateral deposited in a regulated amount by a client with a broker who is financing the purchase of securities —see also REGULATION T b : a deposit made with a broker by a client who is trading in futures

Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Margin

Mar"gin\, n. [OE. margine, margent, L. margo, ginis. Cf. March a border, Marge.]

1. A border; edge; brink; verge; as, the margin of a river or lake.

2. Specifically: The part of a page at the edge left uncovered in writing or printing.

3. (Com.) The difference between the cost and the selling price of an article.

4. Something allowed, or reserved, for that which can not be foreseen or known with certainty.

5. (Brokerage) Collateral security deposited with a broker to secure him from loss on contracts entered into by him on behalf of his principial, as in the speculative buying and selling of stocks, wheat, etc. --N. Biddle.

Margin draft (Masonry), a smooth cut margin on the face of hammer-dressed ashlar, adjacent to the joints.

Margin of a course (Arch.), that part of a course, as of slates or shingles, which is not covered by the course immediately above it. See 2d Gauge.

Syn: Border; brink; verge; brim; rim.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Margin

Mar"gin\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Margined; p. pr. & vb. n. Marginging.]

1. To furnish with a margin.

2. To enter in the margin of a page.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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