4 definitions found
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Marginal \Mar"gin*al\, a. [Cf. F. marginal.]
1. Of or pertaining to a margin.
2. Written or printed in the margin; as a marginal note or
gloss.
From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]:
marginal
adj 1: at or constituting a border or edge; "the marginal strip of
beach" [syn: {edge(a)}, {fringe(a)}, {fringy}]
2: of questionable or minimal quality; "borderline grades";
"marginal writing ability" [syn: {borderline}]
3: of a bare living gained by great labor; "the sharecropper's
hardscrabble life"; "a marginal existence" [syn: {hardscrabble}]
4: just barely adequate or within a lower limit; "a bare
majority"; "a marginal victory" [syn: {bare(a)}]
5: producing at a rate that barely covers production costs;
"marginal industries"; "marginal land"
From Jargon File (4.2.3, 23 NOV 2000) [jargon]:
marginal adj [common] 1. [techspeak] An extremely small
change. "A marginal increase in {core} can decrease {GC} time
drastically." In everyday terms, this means that it is a lot easier to
clean off your desk if you have a spare place to put some of the junk
while you sort through it 2. Of little merit. "This proposed new
feature seems rather marginal to me." 3. Of extremely small probability
of {win}ning. "The power supply was rather marginal anyway; no wonder
it fried."
From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (13 Mar 01) [foldoc]:
marginal
1. Extremely small "A marginal increase in {core}
can decrease {GC} time drastically." In everyday terms, this
means that it is a lot easier to clean off your desk if you
have a spare place to put some of the junk while you sort
through it
2. Of extremely small merit. "This proposed new feature seems
rather marginal to me."
3. Of extremely small probability of {win}ning. "The power
supply was rather marginal anyway; no wonder it fried."
[{Jargon File}]
(1994-10-21)
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