Standard Lemma guide

borderline

adj · adv · noun · verb · 10 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: /ˈboɹ.dɚˌlaɪn/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: B AO1 R D ER0 L AY2 N Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Nearly; not clearly on one side or the other of a border or boundary, ambiguous.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • I would rather hire a talented layman than a university graduate with borderline qualifications.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Of questionable taste or acceptability; approaching bad taste.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Your borderline remarks about my aunt’s dress destroyed my evening.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adj

Meaning 3

Exhibiting borderline personality disorder.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

adv

Meaning 4

Nearly; not entirely but nevertheless to a great extent.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Examples

  • He is borderline hypoglycemic and needs to monitor his sugar intake.
  • I expected him to be super boring but he was actually borderline funny!

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

A boundary or accepted division; a border.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable

Examples

  • She lives on the borderline between reality and madness.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

Ellipsis of borderline personality disorder.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

A person who has borderline personality disorder.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

verb

Meaning 8

To border, or border on; to be physically close or conceptually akin to.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: transitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

9

adjective satellite

Meaning 9

of questionable or minimal quality

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • borderline grades
  • marginal writing ability

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: marginal

Antonyms: none provided

10

noun

Meaning 10

a line that indicates a boundary

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: boundary line, border, delimitation, mete

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: boundary, bound, bounds

Narrower terms: circumference, circuit, fence line, property line, state line, state boundary, Green Line, Line of Control

History

Etymology

From border + line.

Across languages

Translations

40 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Czech: hraniční — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • Dutch: grens — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • Dutch: dubieus — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • Esperanto: limlinia — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • Finnish: rajoilla oleva — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • French: à la limite — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • French: limite — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • German: grenzwertig — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • Greek: οριακός (oriakós) — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • Hindi: सीमा रेखा (sīmā rekhā) — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • Hungarian: kétséges — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • Polish: pograniczny — not clearly on one side or other of a boundary
  • Finnish: epämääräinen — of questionable taste
  • Finnish: rimaa hipova — of questionable taste
  • Hungarian: ízléstelen — of questionable taste
  • Hungarian: ízetlen — of questionable taste
  • Spanish: borderline — of questionable taste
  • Spanish: borderline — exhibiting borderline personality disorder
  • Greek: οριακά (oriaká) — not entirely but nevertheless to a great extent
  • Hungarian: kis híján — not entirely but nevertheless to a great extent
  • Hungarian: jóformán — not entirely but nevertheless to a great extent
  • Czech: hranice — boundary
  • Dutch: grens — boundary
  • Dutch: grenslijn — boundary
  • Dutch: scheidingslijn — boundary
  • Dutch: demarcatie — boundary
  • Dutch: demarcatielijn — boundary
  • Finnish: raja — boundary
  • Finnish: rajaviiva — boundary
  • French: frontière — boundary
  • German: Grenzlinie — boundary
  • Hungarian: határ — boundary
  • Hungarian: határvonal — boundary
  • Hungarian: határeset — boundary
  • Portuguese: fronteira — boundary
  • Spanish: frontera — boundary
  • Spanish: línea divisoria — boundary
  • Spanish: límite — boundary
  • Spanish: confín — boundary
  • Spanish: borderline — person who has borderline personality disorder