brink
Use Brink in a sentence
noun
1.
the edge or margin of a steep place or of land bordering water.
2.
any extreme edge; verge.
3.
a crucial or critical point, especially of a situation or state beyond which success or catastrophe occurs: We were on the brink of war.
Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English brink < Old Norse (Danish) brink, cognate with MLG brink edge, hillside, Old Norse brekka slope, hill
1250–1300; Middle English brink < Old Norse (Danish) brink, cognate with MLG brink edge, hillside, Old Norse brekka slope, hill
Related forms
brink·less, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
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Link To brink
00:10
Brink
is always a great word to know.
So is ninnyhammer. Does it mean:
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
brink (brɪŋk) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | the edge, border, or verge of a steep place: the brink of the precipice |
| 2. | the highest point; top: the sun fell below the brink of the hill |
| 3. | the land at the edge of a body of water |
| 4. | the verge of an event or state: the brink of disaster |
| [C13: from Middle Dutch brinc, of Germanic origin; compare Old Norse brekka slope, Middle Low German brink edge of a field] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
brink
early 13c., from M.L.G. brink "edge," or Dan. brink "steepness, shore, bank, grassy edge," from P.Gmc. *brenkon, prob. from PIE *bhreng-, variant of base *bhren- "project, edge" (cf. Lith. brinkti "to swell").
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
Jobless, penniless and on the brink of homelessness.
GM brought itself to the brink of bankruptcy all by itself.
The discovery increases the possibility that the heavily spotted cats can be rescued from the brink of extinction.
Back from the brink of extinction, the endangered whooping crane is making a slow recovery.
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