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a. The upper edge of a steep or vertical slope:the brink of a cliff. See Synonyms at border.
b. The margin of land bordering a body of water.
2. The point at which something is likely to begin; the verge:"Time and again the monarchs and statesmen of Europe approached the brink of conflict"(W. Bruce Lincoln).
[Middle Englishbrinke, probably of Scandinavian origin; akin to Swedish brinkbrink, steep hillside, steep riverbank, andMiddle Low Germanbrink, hillside, grassland.]
Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:
The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.