marginal

• POS: Adjective
• HYPHEN: mar=gin=al

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.

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, unimportant

ROGET 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.