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Showing results for ragged edge. Search instead for on+the+ragged+edge.
Synonyms

ragged edge

American  

noun

  1. the brink, as of a cliff.

  2. any extreme edge; verge.

idioms

  1. on the ragged edge, in a dangerous or precarious position; on the verge or brink of.

    on the ragged edge of despair.

Etymology

Origin of ragged edge

An Americanism dating back to 1875–80

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The last few years I've been off balance, right on the ragged edge of my technique where that if I have to push a little bit more, I lose it.

From BBC • Aug. 28, 2024

But this sleek atmosphere conceals a ragged edge.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 2, 2023

The Buccaneers’ season rode the ragged edge of disaster for the first two months.

From Washington Post • Nov. 14, 2022

Firefighters driving bulldozers straightened the ragged edge of a fire line that had been gouged out by firefighters to keep the Bootleg Fire from spreading further east, the firefighting command center said.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 2, 2021

Instead of being the warm center of the world the middle-west now seemed like the ragged edge of the universe--so I decided to go east and learn the bond business.

From " The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.