Corner vs. Edge — What's the Difference?
By Tayyaba Rehman — Updated on October 20, 2023
A corner is where two edges or lines meet at an angle. An edge is a linear boundary of a surface or object. Both describe limits but in distinct manners.
Difference Between Corner and Edge
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
A corner can be described as the point at which two or more edges or lines intersect, resulting in a vertex or angle. An edge, on the other hand, is the linear boundary that separates two faces or surfaces of an object. Both play crucial roles in defining shapes and forms in geometry.
In the realm of architecture, a corner often signifies the junction of two walls. It's where two sides of a structure meet, potentially creating a pillar or joint. Edges, conversely, can define the limits of a surface such as the top of a table or the side of a building. The edge is the defining line while the corner is the convergence of two or more of these lines.
When considering everyday items, corners are seen at the intersecting points. Think of a book; it has multiple corners where the edges of its covers meet. The edge of that same book would be the outer line running along its cover, defining its boundary.
In mathematics, particularly in geometry, a corner is typically referred to as a vertex. It is a point where two or more curves, edges, or lines meet. An edge is a straight line segment connecting two vertices in shapes like polygons or polyhedra. It’s integral in defining the boundaries of such shapes.
Regarding emotions and situations, both words can be metaphorically used. A person might feel "cornered" when put in a difficult situation with no apparent escape. Meanwhile, someone living "on the edge" is typically taking risks or experiencing intense emotions. Both terms, though different in their basic definition, can convey a sense of extremity or limit in diverse contexts.
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Comparison Chart
Basic Definition
Point where two or more lines or edges meet.
Linear boundary of a surface or object.
In Geometry
Referred to as a vertex.
Line segment connecting two vertices.
Metaphorical Use
Used to describe a trapped situation.
Denotes risk-taking or extreme emotions.
In Everyday Items
Intersection of two edges, like in a book.
Outer boundary line, like a book's cover.
In Architecture
Junction of two walls or structural lines.
Limit of a surface or facade.
Compare with Definitions
Corner
A position in which one faces difficulty or opposition.
He felt cornered during the interview.
Edge
The outer boundary line of a surface.
The edge of the paper was frayed.
Corner
The position at which two lines, surfaces, or edges meet and form an angle
The four corners of a rectangle.
Edge
A sharpened side of a blade.
The knife lost its edge and needs sharpening.
Corner
The area enclosed or bounded by an angle formed in this manner
Sat by myself in the corner.
The corner of one's eye.
Edge
A competitive advantage.
His experience gives him an edge in the job market.
Corner
The place where two roads or streets join or intersect.
Edge
The outside limit of an object, area, or surface
She perched on the edge of a desk
A willow tree at the water's edge
Corner
(Sports) Any of the four angles of a boxing or wrestling ring where the ropes are joined.
Edge
The sharpened side of the blade of a cutting implement or weapon
A knife with a razor-sharp edge
Corner
(Baseball) Either side of home plate, toward or away from the batter.
Edge
A quality or factor which gives superiority over close rivals
His cars have the edge over his rivals'
Corner
A corner kick in soccer.
Edge
Provide with a border or edge
The pool is edged with paving
Corner
(Football) A cornerback.
Edge
Move or cause to move gradually or furtively in a particular direction
Hazel quietly edged him away from the others
She tried to edge away from him
Corner
A threatening or embarrassing position from which escape is difficult
Got myself into a corner by boasting.
Edge
Give an intense or sharp quality to
The bitterness that edged her voice
Corner
A remote, secluded, or secret place
The four corners of the earth.
A beautiful little corner of Paris.
Edge
Strike (the ball) with the edge of the bat; strike a ball delivered by (the bowler) with the edge of the bat
Haynes edged to slip
He edged a ball into his pad
Corner
A part or piece made to fit on a corner, as in mounting or for protection.
Edge
Ski with one's weight on the edges of one's skis
You will be edging early, controlling a parallel turn
Corner
A speculative monopoly of a stock or commodity created by purchasing all or most of the available supply in order to raise its price.
Edge
A thin, sharpened side, as of the blade of a cutting instrument.
Corner
Exclusive possession; monopoly
"Neither party ... has a corner on all the good ideas" (George B. Merry).
Edge
The degree of sharpness of a cutting blade.
Corner
To place or drive into a corner
Cornered the thieves and captured them.
Edge
A penetrating, incisive quality
"His simplicity sets off the satire, and gives it a finer edge" (William Hazlitt).
Corner
To form a corner in (a stock or commodity)
Cornered the silver market.
Edge
A slight but noticeable sharpness, harshness, or discomforting quality
His voice had an edge to it.
Corner
To furnish with corners.
Edge
Keenness, as of desire or enjoyment; zest
The brisk walk gave an edge to my appetite.
Corner
To turn, as at a corner
A truck that corners poorly.
Edge
The line or area farthest away from the middle
Lifted the carpet's edge.
Corner
To come together or be situated on or at a corner.
Edge
The line of intersection of two surfaces
The edge of a brick.
Corner
Located at a street corner
A corner drugstore.
Edge
A rim or brink
The edge of a cliff.
Corner
Designed for use in a corner
A corner table.
Edge
The point at which something is likely to begin
On the edge of war.
Corner
The point where two converging lines meet; an angle, either external or internal.
The corners of the wire mesh were reinforced with little blobs of solder.
Edge
A margin of superiority; an advantage
A slight edge over the opposition.
Corner
The space in the angle between converging lines or walls which meet in a point.
The chimney corner was full of cobwebs.
Edge
To give an edge to (a blade); sharpen.
Corner
The projection into space of an angle in a solid object.
Herbert bruised his shin on the corner of the coffee table.
Edge
To tilt (a ski or both skis) in such a way that an edge or both edges bite into the snow.
Corner
An intersection of two streets; any of the four outer points off the street at that intersection.
The liquor store on the corner also sold lottery tickets.
Edge
To put a border or edge on
Edged the quilt with embroidery.
Corner
(attributive) Denoting a premises that is in a convenient local location, notionally, but not necessarily literally, on the corner of two streets.
Corner store, corner deli, corner newsagent
Edge
To act as or be an edge of
Bushes that edged the garden path.
Corner
An edge or extremity; the part farthest from the center; hence, any quarter or part, or the direction in which it lies.
Shining a light in the dark corners of the mind.
I took a trip out to his corner of town.
Edge
To advance or push slightly or gradually
The dog edged the ball with its nose.
Corner
A secret or secluded place; a remote or out of the way place; a nook.
On weekends, Emily liked to find a quiet corner and curl up with a good book.
Edge
To trim or shape the edge of
Edge a lawn.
Corner
An embarrassing situation; a difficulty.
Edge
To surpass or beat by a small margin. Often used with out
The runner edged her opponent out at the last moment.
Corner
A sufficient interest in a salable security or commodity to allow the cornering party to influence prices.
In the 1970s, private investors tried to get a corner on the silver market, but were ultimately unsuccessful.
Edge
To move gradually or hesitantly
The child edged toward the door.
Corner
(heading) Relating to the playing field.
Edge
The boundary line of a surface.
Corner
(baseball) One of the four vertices of the strike zone.
The pitch was just off the corner, low and outside.
Edge
(geometry) A one-dimensional face of a polytope. In particular, the joining line between two vertices of a polygon; the place where two faces of a polyhedron meet.
Corner
(baseball) First base or third base.
There are runners on the corners with just one out.
Edge
An advantage.
I have the edge on him.
Corner
(football) A corner kick.
Edge
The thin cutting side of the blade of an instrument, such as an ax, knife, sword, or scythe; that which cuts as an edge does, or wounds deeply, etc.
Corner
(American football) A cornerback.
Edge
A sharp terminating border; a margin; a brink; an extreme verge.
The cup is right on the edge of the table.
He is standing on the edge of a precipice.
Corner
(boxing) The corner of the ring, which is where the boxer rests before and during a fight.
Edge
Sharpness; readiness or fitness to cut; keenness; intenseness of desire.
Corner
The group of people who assist a boxer during a bout.
Edge
The border or part adjacent to the line of division; the beginning or early part (of a period of time)
In the edge of evening
Corner
A place where people meet for a particular purpose.
Welcome to our English corner.
Edge
(cricket) A shot where the ball comes off the edge of the bat, often unintentionally.
Corner
(obsolete) A point scored in a rubber at whist.
Edge
(graph theory) A connected pair of vertices in a graph.
Corner
(transitive) To drive (someone or something) into a corner or other confined space.
The cat had cornered a cricket between the sofa and the television stand.
Edge
A level of sexual arousal that is maintained just short of reaching the point of inevitability, or climax.
Corner
(transitive) To trap in a position of great difficulty or hopeless embarrassment.
The reporter cornered the politician by pointing out the hypocrisy of his position on mandatory sentencing, in light of the politician's own actions in court.
Edge
The point of data production in an organization (the focus of edge computing), as opposed to the cloud.
Corner
(transitive) To put (someone) in an awkward situation.
Edge
(transitive) To move an object slowly and carefully in a particular direction.
He edged the book across the table.
The muggers edged her into an alley and demanded money.
Corner
To get sufficient command of (a stock, commodity, etc.), so as to be able to manipulate its price.
The buyers attempted to corner the shares of the railroad stock, so as to facilitate their buyout.
It's extremely hard to corner the petroleum market because there are so many players.
Edge
(intransitive) To move slowly and carefully in a particular direction.
He edged away from her.
Corner
To turn a corner or drive around a curve.
As the stock car driver cornered the last turn, he lost control and spun out.
Edge
(usually in the form 'just edge') To win by a small margin.
Corner
To handle while moving around a corner in a road or otherwise turning.
That BMW corners well, but the suspension is too stiff.
Edge
To hit the ball with an edge of the bat, causing a fine deflection.
Corner
(transitive) To supply with corners.
Edge
(transitive) To trim the margin of a lawn where the grass meets the sidewalk, usually with an electric or gas-powered lawn edger.
Corner
The point where two converging lines meet; an angle, either external or internal.
Edge
(transitive) To furnish with an edge; to construct an edging.
Corner
The space in the angle between converging lines or walls which meet in a point; as, the chimney corner.
Edge
To furnish with an edge, as a tool or weapon; to sharpen.
Corner
An edge or extremity; the part farthest from the center; hence, any quarter or part.
From the four corners of the earth they come.
Edge
(figurative) To make sharp or keen; to incite; to exasperate; to goad; to urge or egg on.
Corner
A secret or secluded place; a remote or out of the way place; a nook.
This thing was not done in a corner.
Edge
To delay one's orgasm so as to remain almost at the point of orgasm.
Corner
Direction; quarter.
Sits the wind in that corner!
Edge
The thin cutting side of the blade of an instrument; as, the edge of an ax, knife, sword, or scythe.
He which hath the sharp sword with two edges.
Slander,Whose edge is sharper than the sword.
Corner
The state of things produced by a combination of persons, who buy up the whole or the available part of any stock or species of property, which compels those who need such stock or property to buy of them at their own price; as, a corner in a railway stock.
Edge
Any sharp terminating border; a margin; a brink; extreme verge; as, the edge of a table, a precipice.
Upon the edge of yonder coppice.
In worst extremes, and on the perilous edgeOf battle.
Pursue even to the very edge of destruction.
Corner
A free kick from close to the nearest corner flag post, allowed to the opposite side when a player has sent the ball behind his own goal line.
Edge
Sharpness; readiness or fitness to cut; keenness; intenseness of desire.
The full edge of our indignation.
Death and persecution lose all the ill that they can have, if we do not set an edge upon them by our fears and by our vices.
Corner
To drive into a corner.
Edge
The border or part adjacent to the line of division; the beginning or early part; as, in the edge of evening.
Corner
To drive into a position of great difficulty or hopeless embarrassment; as, to corner a person in argument.
Edge
To furnish with an edge as a tool or weapon; to sharpen.
To edge her champion's sword.
Corner
To get command of (a stock, commodity, etc.), so as to be able to put one's own price on it; as, to corner the shares of a railroad stock; to corner petroleum.
Edge
To shape or dress the edge of, as with a tool.
Corner
A place off to the side of an area;
He tripled to the rightfield corner
He glanced out of the corner of his eye
Edge
To furnish with a fringe or border; as, to edge a dress; to edge a garden with box.
Hills whose tops were edged with groves.
Corner
The point where two lines meet or intersect;
The corners of a rectangle
Edge
To make sharp or keen, figuratively; to incite; to exasperate; to goad; to urge or egg on.
By such reasonings, the simple were blinded, and the malicious edged.
Corner
An interior angle formed be two meeting walls;
A piano was in one corner of the room
Edge
To move by little and little or cautiously, as by pressing forward edgewise; as, edging their chairs forwards.
Corner
The intersection of two streets;
Standing on the corner watching all the girls go by
Edge
To move sideways; to move gradually; as, edge along this way.
Corner
The point where three areas or surfaces meet or intersect;
The corners of a cube
Edge
To sail close to the wind.
I must edge up on a point of wind.
Corner
A small concavity
Edge
The boundary of a surface
Corner
A temporary monopoly on a kind of commercial trade;
A corner on the silver market
Edge
A sharp side formed by the intersection of two surfaces of an object;
He rounded the edges of the box
Corner
A predicament from which a skillful or graceful escape is impossible;
His lying got him into a tight corner
Edge
A line determining the limits of an area
Corner
A projecting part that is corner-shaped;
He knocked off the corners
Edge
The attribute of urgency;
His voice had an edge to it
Corner
A remote area;
In many corners of the world they still practice slavery
Edge
A slight competitive advantage;
He had an edge on the competition
Corner
(architecture) solid exterior angle of a building; especially one formed by a cornerstone
Edge
A strip near the boundary of an object;
He jotted a note on the margin of the page
Corner
Gain control over;
Corner the gold market
Edge
Advance slowly, as if by inches;
He edged towards the car
Corner
Force a person or an animal into a position from which he cannot escape
Edge
Provide with a border or edge;
Edge the tablecloth with embroidery
Corner
Turn a corner;
The car corners
Edge
Lie adjacent to another or share a boundary;
Canada adjoins the U.S.
England marches with Scotland
Corner
The point of intersection where two sides meet.
The box has sharp corners.
Edge
Provide with an edge;
Edge a blade
Corner
A remote or secluded location.
They met in a quiet corner of the park.
Edge
A quality of intensity or excitement.
There's an edge to his voice today.
Corner
A place or angle where two or more surfaces converge.
The painting was hung in the corner of the room.
Edge
The brink or verge of something.
She's on the edge of a breakthrough.
Corner
A protective or advantageous position.
The store is located on a busy corner.
Common Curiosities
How do corners differ in 2D and 3D objects?
In 2D, a corner is where two lines meet; in 3D, it's where three or more planes meet.
Is the rim of a cup considered its edge?
Yes, the rim would be the edge of the cup.
What's a basic definition of a corner?
A corner is the point where two or more lines or edges intersect.
How would you describe an edge?
An edge is the outer boundary line of a surface or object.
What does "living on the edge" mean?
It means leading a lifestyle marked by taking risks or experiencing intense situations.
Can "edge" refer to a sharpened side of a tool?
Yes, like the edge of a knife or blade.
In architecture, is a corner always at a 90-degree angle?
No, corners in architecture can be of various angles, not just 90 degrees.
In sports, what does "corner" typically refer to?
In some sports like soccer, a "corner" is a method of restarting play from the corner of the field.
What's a "corner store"?
It's a small retail shop located on a street corner or in a neighborhood.
How is "edge" used in the tech world?
"Edge computing" refers to processing data closer to the source of data generation.
Can a shape have both corners and edges?
Yes, for example, a rectangle has four corners and four edges.
Can a circle have corners?
No, a circle is continuous and doesn't have distinct corners.
How are corners used metaphorically in language?
"Cornered" can mean being placed in a difficult or inescapable situation.
Does every shape have edges?
No, shapes like circles don't have edges in the traditional sense.
How is "edge" used in fashion terminology?
Having "an edge" can mean a distinctive or avant-garde style or appearance.
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Written by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
