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marginal
WORDNET DICTIONARY
Adjective marginal has 4 senses
- marginal(s = adj.all) fringy - at or constituting a border or edge; "the marginal strip of beach" Derived forms noun margin1, noun marginality1
- marginal(s = adj.all) borderline - of questionable or minimal quality; "borderline grades"; "marginal writing ability"
- marginal(s = adj.all) bare - just barely adequate or within a lower limit; "a bare majority"; "a marginal victory"
- marginal(s = adj.all) Array - producing at a rate that barely covers production costs; "marginal industries"
CIDE DICTIONARY
marginal, a. [Cf. F. marginal.].
- Of or pertaining to a margin. [1913 Webster]
- Written or printed in the margin; as, a marginal note or gloss. [1913 Webster]
- At the lower limit; barely sufficient; as, of marginal utility. [PJC]
OXFORD DICTIONARY
marginal, adj.
1 a of or written in a margin. b having marginal notes.
2 a of or at the edge; not central. b not significant or decisive (the work is of merely marginal interest).
3 Brit. (of a parliamentary seat or constituency) having a small majority at risk in an election.
4 close to the limit, esp. of profitability.
5 (of the sea) adjacent to the shore of a State.
6 (of land) difficult to cultivate; unprofitable.
7 barely adequate; unprovided for.
1 a of or written in a margin. b having marginal notes.
2 a of or at the edge; not central. b not significant or decisive (the work is of merely marginal interest).
3 Brit. (of a parliamentary seat or constituency) having a small majority at risk in an election.
4 close to the limit, esp. of profitability.
5 (of the sea) adjacent to the shore of a State.
6 (of land) difficult to cultivate; unprofitable.
7 barely adequate; unprovided for.
Idiom
marginal cost the cost added by making one extra copy etc.
Derivative
marginality n. marginally adv.
Etymology
med.L marginalis (as MARGIN)
THESAURUS
marginal
bordering, borderline, boundary, bounding, coastal, determinant, determinative, determining, disputable, doubtful, dubious, extreme, fringing, frontier, inferior, infinitesimal, insignificant, limbic, liminal, limit, limiting, littoral, low-priority, minimal, negligible, no great shakes, of no account, of no consequence, of no matter, of no significance, on the edge, questionable, rimming, secondary, skirting, slight, small, terminal, threshold, tiny, unimportantROGET THESAURUS
marginal
Edge
N edge, verge, brink, brow, brim, margin, border, confine, skirt, rim, flange, side, mouth, jaws, chops, chaps, fauces, lip, muzzle, threshold, door, porch, portal, coast, shore, frame, fringe, flounce, frill, list, trimming, edging, skirting, hem, selvedge, welt, furbelow, valance, gimp, border, marginal, skirting, labial, labiated, marginated.
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