margin
3 ENTRIES FOUND:
plural
margins
plural
margins
Britannica Dictionary definition of MARGIN
[count]
1
:
the part of a page that is above, below, or to the side of the printed part
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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
— often used figuratively in the phrase on the margins or (US) on the margin
-
We'll meet at the margin [=(more commonly) edge] of the forest.
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Mountains lie at the city's northern/southern margins.
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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]
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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
◊ 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.
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We want the design to offer users a generous margin for error.
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The schedule allows us very little margin for error.
4
:
a measurement of difference
—
see also profit margin
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The bullet missed his heart by a narrow/slim margin. [=the bullet narrowly missed his heart]
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We lost the election by a one-vote margin. [=we lost the election by one vote]
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She won by a margin of 3,000 votes.
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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.
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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]
