brink
/ˈbɹɪŋk/ noun, proper noun
Forms brinks
- noun The edge, margin, or border of a steep place, as of a precipice; a bank or edge. “the brink of a river”
- noun (figurative) The edge or border. “the brink of success”
- proper noun A surname.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Middle English brinke, brenke, from Old Norse *brenka, brekka, from Proto-Germanic *brinkǭ, *brinkaz (“hill, edge (of land)”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰren- (“to project”). Cognate with Dutch brink (“grassland”), regional German Brink, Icelandic brekka (“slope”); also Tocharian B prenke (“island”), Irish braine (“prow”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun The edge, margin, or border of a steep place, as of a precipice; a bank or edge, as of a river or pit; a verge; a border; as, the brink of a chasm. Also Fig. "The brink of vice." Bp. Porteus.
Etymology [Dan. brink edge, verge; akin to Sw. brink declivity, hill, Icel. brekka; cf. LG. brink a grassy hill, W. bryn hill, bryncyn hillock.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “brink”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details