border on
phrasal verb
bordered on; bordering on; borders on
1
: to have a border on (something) : to lie on a boundary of (something)
The area my ancestors come from borders on the Atacama Desert.
2
: to be very like (something) : to come very close to being (something)
The play's dialog borders on the ridiculous.
an enthusiasm bordering on fanaticism
Examples of border on in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In one of the most harrowing scenes in the movie, a drunken Douglas Springsteen cajoles a young Bruce into a bedroom slapping game that begins to border on genuine physical abuse.
—
Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 24 Oct. 2025
Trump’s have become structural, bordering on economic identity.
—Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Oct. 2025
As Brown and O’Neill attempt to reimagine job loss—to make poinsettias out of pink slips—their positivity can seem to border on delusion.
—Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 20 Oct. 2025
The scene where groundskeeper Walter (Marcus Henderson) runs aimlessly across the lawn borders on the ridiculous, but, without getting into spoilers, the only other mistake Peele makes is the film's antagonist.
—Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for border on
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Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 24 Oct. 2025
Trump’s have become structural, bordering on economic identity.
—Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Oct. 2025
As Brown and O’Neill attempt to reimagine job loss—to make poinsettias out of pink slips—their positivity can seem to border on delusion.
—Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 20 Oct. 2025
The scene where groundskeeper Walter (Marcus Henderson) runs aimlessly across the lawn borders on the ridiculous, but, without getting into spoilers, the only other mistake Peele makes is the film's antagonist.
—Steven Thrash, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for border on
Cite this Entry
“Border on.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/border%20on. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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