I. verge 1 /vɜːdʒ $ vɜːrdʒ/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: 'long pole' , from Latin virga ; from within the verge 'within the area controlled by someone who carried a pole as a sign of authority' ]
1 . be on the verge of something to be at the point where something is about to happen:
Jess seemed on the verge of tears.
an event which left her on the verge of a nervous breakdown
Mountain gorillas are on the verge of extinction.
be on the verge of doing something
The show was on the verge of being canceled due to low ratings.
2 . British English the edge of a road, path etc:
The car skidded across the road and came to a stop on the grass verge.
II. verge 2 BrE AmE verb
verge on/upon something phrasal verb
to be very close to a harmful or extreme state:
Many of Lewis’s activities verged on the illegal.
Some of his ideas are verging on the dangerous.
His love of James Dean movies verged on fanaticism.