with an edge

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changeling

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Hello,

I hope you all are doing well.

I want to use the phrase ‘with an edge’ but I’m not quite sure about its exact meaning.

I perceive it as ‘advantage’. When something is ‘with an edge’, it means it has an advantage over something else. But I’m not really sure.

Would you kindly share your thoughts?
 

englishhobby

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Hello,

I hope you all are doing well.

I want to use the phrase ‘with an edge’ but I’m not quite sure about its exact meaning.

I perceive it as ‘advantage’. When something is ‘with an edge’, it means it has an advantage over something else. But I’m not really sure.

Would you kindly share your thoughts?

I don't think there is such an idiom or set phrase. It's just about the word edge used in some context. Try to think of some sentences with it (these definitions and examples may help: edge - definition of edge by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia. )
 
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probus

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An edge can indeed mean an advantage.

In this meaning the word is more commonly used with the definite article. To have the edge means to have the advantage. But the indefinite article is also possible in some contexts. When somebody has an advantage we can say that he or or she has an edge, and that possessive transforms into a "with a" phrase in a usual way. All the following examples come from the field of games and competition.

With an edge over white, black chose to try the aggressive NxE7.

With a generally-acknowledged edge in defense, country A is widely expected to defeat country B.

Whenever I have a small edge, I like to put pressure on my opponent.
 
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JMurray

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I want to use the phrase ‘with an edge’ but I’m not quite sure about its exact meaning.

There is common usage for "with an edge" meaning that something or someone has a provocative or adventurous quality.
See #6 in englishhobby's link.

From COCA:
"…the industry feeds an increasingly restless audience with bigger stars, more provocative themes and stories with an edge unheard of even a decade ago."
"She was a sweet one, but with an edge that Luke found refreshing among the local girls."

Also:
"Char herself aspired to the editorial chairmanship of some edgy magazine, partially due to her refreshing lack of the new Victorianism."
"The script acknowledges that the Muppets had faded to the background as edgier forms of comedy came in vogue."
"There's so much I want to hear from Michelle Obama, uncensored and candid, and I hope she can be a little edgier."
 
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