mar·gin
Pronounced:
/ˈmɑɚʤən/
Function:
nounInflected forms:
plural mar·ginsMeaning:
[count] 1 : the part of a page that is above, below, or to the side of the printed part ▪ Please write your name in the left/left-hand margin of the page. ▪ a book with wide/narrow margins
2 : the place where something (such as a piece of land) stops : the edge of something ▪ We'll meet at the margin [=(more commonly) edge] of the forest. ▪ Mountains lie at the city's northern/southern margins. —often used figuratively in the phrase on the margins or (US) on the margin ▪ We are trying to improve medical care for poor families living on the margins of society. [=poor families who are often forgotten or ignored by society] ▪ The business has been operating on the margins of respectability. [=has been operating in a way that is not truly respectable]
3 : an extra amount of something (such as time or space) that can be used if it is needed ▪ a safety margin ◊If you have little or no margin for/of error, it means that you need to be very careful not to make mistakes. If you have a greater margin for/of error, you can be less careful. ▪ We want the design to offer users a generous margin for error. ▪ The schedule allows us very little margin for error.
4 : a measurement of difference ▪ The bullet missed his heart by a narrow/slim margin. [=the bullet narrowly missed his heart] ▪ We lost the election by a one-vote margin. [=we lost the election by one vote] ▪ She won by a margin of 3,000 votes. ▪ He was the winner by a large/considerable margin. ◊A margin of error is a number or percentage that shows how accurate a measurement is. ▪ The poll indicates that the President is supported by 54 percent of the voters, with a margin of error of 3 percent. [=it is possible that as few as 51 percent or as many as 57 percent of the voters support the President] —see also profit margin
2 : the place where something (such as a piece of land) stops : the edge of something ▪ We'll meet at the margin [=(more commonly) edge] of the forest. ▪ Mountains lie at the city's northern/southern margins. —often used figuratively in the phrase on the margins or (US) on the margin ▪ We are trying to improve medical care for poor families living on the margins of society. [=poor families who are often forgotten or ignored by society] ▪ The business has been operating on the margins of respectability. [=has been operating in a way that is not truly respectable]
3 : an extra amount of something (such as time or space) that can be used if it is needed ▪ a safety margin ◊If you have little or no margin for/of error, it means that you need to be very careful not to make mistakes. If you have a greater margin for/of error, you can be less careful. ▪ We want the design to offer users a generous margin for error. ▪ The schedule allows us very little margin for error.
4 : a measurement of difference ▪ The bullet missed his heart by a narrow/slim margin. [=the bullet narrowly missed his heart] ▪ We lost the election by a one-vote margin. [=we lost the election by one vote] ▪ She won by a margin of 3,000 votes. ▪ He was the winner by a large/considerable margin. ◊A margin of error is a number or percentage that shows how accurate a measurement is. ▪ The poll indicates that the President is supported by 54 percent of the voters, with a margin of error of 3 percent. [=it is possible that as few as 51 percent or as many as 57 percent of the voters support the President] —see also profit margin