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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

rim.

An edge around something, especially when circular.

3 characters1 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ɹɪm/Australia, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation[ˈɹʷɪm]Australia, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/ɹəm/New-Zealand[ˈɹʷəm]New-Zealand
  1. An edge around something, especially when circular.

  2. A wheelrim.

  3. A semicircular copydesk.

  4. The narrow surface of wine that meets the glass when it is tilted, used in identifying the age, body, etc.

Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Old English rima Middle English rim English rim From Middle English rim, rym, rime, from Old English rima (“rim, edge, border, bank, coast”), from Proto-Germanic *rimô, *rembô (“edge, border”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *rem-, *remə- (“to rest, support, be based”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Rim (“plank, wooden cross, trellis”), Old Saxon rimi (“edge; border; trim”), Icelandic rimi (“a strip of land”).

verb/ɹɪm/Australia, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation[ˈɹʷɪm]Australia, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/ɹəm/New-Zealand[ˈɹʷəm]New-Zealand
  1. To form a rim on.

    transitive
  2. To follow the contours, possibly creating a circuit.

    transitive
    Palm trees rim the beach.
    A walking path rims the island.
  3. To roll around a rim.

    intransitive · transitive
    The golf ball rimmed the cup.
    The basketball rimmed in ... and out.
  4. To coat the rim of a glass with salt or another powder.

Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Old English rima Middle English rim English rim From Middle English rim, rym, rime, from Old English rima (“rim, edge, border, bank, coast”), from Proto-Germanic *rimô, *rembô (“edge, border”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *rem-, *remə- (“to rest, support, be based”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Rim (“plank, wooden cross, trellis”), Old Saxon rimi (“edge; border; trim”), Icelandic rimi (“a strip of land”).

verb/ɹɪm/Australia, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation[ˈɹʷɪm]Australia, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/ɹəm/New-Zealand[ˈɹʷəm]New-Zealand
  1. To lick the anus of a partner as a sexual act; to perform anilingus.

    slang · vulgar
Where this word comes from

From a variation of ream.

noun/ɹɪm/Australia, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation[ˈɹʷɪm]Australia, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/ɹəm/New-Zealand[ˈɹʷəm]New-Zealand
  1. A membrane.

    UK · dialectal
  2. The membrane enclosing the intestines; the peritoneum, hence loosely, the intestines; the lower part of the abdomen; belly.

    UK · dialectal · obsolete
Where this word comes from

From Middle English rim, rym, ryme, reme, from Old English rēoma (“membrane, ligament”), from Proto-West Germanic *reumō.

noun/ɹɪm/Australia, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation[ˈɹʷɪm]Australia, Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation/ɹəm/New-Zealand[ˈɹʷəm]New-Zealand
  1. A step of a ladder; a rung.

    UK · dialectal
Where this word comes from

Unknown.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.