Meaning & use
periphery
Last updated
Meanings
nounusually singular
The outer edge or border of an area, away from its center.
Grammar: Usually singular with the: on the periphery of the city.
Patterns
- on the periphery of something
- at the periphery of something
Many factories stand on the periphery of the town.
The deer stayed on the periphery of the clearing.
Housing costs are lower on the periphery of the city.
nounusually singularfigurative
A less important position at the edge of a group, topic or activity, away from the main action.
Grammar: Used figuratively: on the periphery of the debate.
Patterns
- on the periphery of something
- at the periphery
She remained on the periphery of the group and rarely spoke.
Climate policy was once on the periphery of politics.
Small parties stay on the periphery of national debate.
nounusually singulartechnical
Outer area of your vision, sight or attention, away from where you are looking directly.
Grammar: Often appears in the phrase peripheral vision; used with in or at.
Patterns
- in the periphery of your vision
A movement in the periphery of his vision made him turn.
Cameras on the car cover the periphery that drivers cannot see.
Word forms
| plural | peripheries |
|---|
Common combinations
- on the periphery
- The village sits on the periphery of the national park.
- the periphery of
- He lived on the periphery of the art world.
- urban periphery
- Poorer neighborhoods spread across the urban periphery.
- push to the periphery
- Local voices were pushed to the periphery of the planning process.
- periphery of vision
- Something shifted at the periphery of vision.
Synonyms and how they differ
- edge
- Edge is the everyday word for any outer boundary, while periphery is more formal and often suggests a wide outer zone.
- margin
- Margin focuses on a narrow border strip, as in a page or a vote, while periphery covers a broader outer region.
- outskirts
- Outskirts is only for the outer parts of a town or city, whereas periphery also works for ideas and groups.
- fringe
- Fringe often means the extreme or unconventional side of a movement, with a slight negative tone, which periphery does not carry.
Opposites
Word family
- peripheral adjective
- on the edge, or not of main importance
- peripheral noun
- a device such as a printer connected to a computer
- peripherally adverb
- in a way that is on the edge, or not centrally
- perimeter noun
- the outer boundary of an area
Commonly confused: periphery or perimeter? periphery or periphrasis?
periphery vs perimeter
Perimeter is the measured length or line around a shape or area, while periphery is the outer zone itself.
periphery vs periphrasis
Periphrasis means using a longer way of saying something, and it is a rare language term unrelated to edges.
Practice
The new shopping center was built on the ___ of the town, far from the old market square.
Choose one answer.
On the periphery means at the outer edge, which matches far from the square. Center and heart mean the opposite, and perimeter line does not fit the pattern.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “periphery”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.