Dictionary

brinkmanship en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˈbɹɪŋk.mən.ʃɪp/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• /ˈbɹɪŋk.mənˌʃɪp/ (General-American)
• (General-American) audio

Etymology

From brink (“border, edge”) + -manship (suffix denoting expertise, involvement, or special status in an area).

Meanings

1. (uncountable, usually) The pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink (for example, by risking a dangerous policy) rather than to concede a point.
   • It is high time to look back from the abyss where we are going to step in and give up the brinkmanship until the point of no return is reached. 1972 April–June, Salil Dutta, “Reviews and Notices of Books: Mahaprolay Ki Ghoney Asche? (Are the Last Days Nearer?) By Jagannath Mukherjee, […]”, in Amalendu Bose, editor, The Calcutta Review, volume III, number 4 (New Series), Calcutta, West Bengal: University of Calcutta, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 324:
   • Having said this much, perhaps I can ask you in return that these critics should recognize that the administration, which now bears responsibility for the conduct of our foreign affairs, does not admire force for its own sake, or brinkmanship of any sort. 1965 May 17, William Proxmire, quoting McGeorge Bundy in the The New York Times, 17 May 1965, “Vietnam Debate: Democracy at Work”, in Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the 89th Congress, First Session: Appendix (United States Senate), volume 111, part 8, Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 10688, column 2:
   • The diplomat accused the other nation's leader of brinkmanship for refusing to redeploy the troops stationed along their nations' shared border.
   • We shall probably have several narrow escapes from Cuban-like brinkmanships, and although these will intensify the realisation of the need for a united world system, the inherent distrust and suspicion with which the present generation has been brought up, coupled with the too slow adaptation of politicians to new situations, will prove too great a hindrance. 1964 June 4, Joseph Rotblat, “Scientists as Peacemakers”, in Nigel Calder, editor, New Scientist, volume 22, number 394, London: Harrison, Raison and Co., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 619, column 2:
   • The Prime Minister [Tony Blair] is in Belfast today, hoping to repeat his triumph of brinkmanship of last April, when he emerged from an apparent negotiating gridlock with the Good Friday peace agreement. 1999 June 28, Derek Brown, “Brinkmanship in Belfast”, in Alan Rusbridger, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 17 Nov 2022:
   • For three months, a battle of brinkmanship has been going on between the government of Alexis Tsipras and its European creditors over a cash-for-reforms plan that would give Greece the €7.2bn worth of rescue funds that it needs to meet its debt payments. 2015 May 6, “The Guardian view on Greece: dangerous brinkmanship: Editorial”, in The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 18 Feb 2022:
   • Debt ceiling brinkmanship in 2011 sent stocks tumbling, slowed economic growth and prompted analysts to downgrade the country’s credit rating for the first time. 2021 September 23, David Leonhardt, Ian Prasad Philbrick, “Congressional brinkmanship”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 18 Feb 2022:
   • It was an inept piece of brinkmanship from a politician who, while clearly a decent man, has not convincingly navigated his party through ever-choppier waters following the resignation of Nicola Sturgeon last February. 2024 April 29, Editorial, “The Guardian view on Humza Yousaf’s resignation: miscalculation leads to crisis”, in The Guardian, UK, →ISSN:
   • They say that in ancient times the Romans used to take cold showers before deciding on important questions. Perhaps, this should be recommended to some excessively ardent supporters of the policy of brinkmanship. 1959 July, Nikita Khrushchev, “World Affairs”, in [anonymous], transl., Soviet World Outlook: A Handbook of Communist Statements (Department of State Publication; 6836; European and British Commonwealth Series; 56), 3rd edition, Washington, D.C.: Department of State, →OCLC, page 207:

Forms

Deriveds

brinkman

Relateds

brinksman · one-upmanship · chicken · gamesmanship

Translations (32)

bg опасна игра (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · nl riskant buitenlands beleid (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · da højt spil (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · ja 瀬戸際戦術 (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · es política del borde del abismo (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · mi tū whakatete (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · cmn 邊緣政策 /边缘政策 (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · fr stratégie du bord de l’abyme (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · pt diplomacia arriscada (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · ru опасная игра (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · fi uhkailu (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · de Hochrisikopolitik (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · uk балансування на межі (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · nl afgrondpolitiek (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · it politica del rischio calcolato (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · fi kova peli (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · ko 벼랑끝 전술 (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · cmn 極限施壓 /极限施压 (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · de Spiel mit dem Feuer (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · sv högt spel (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · ru хождение по краю (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · uk балансування над прірвою (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · ja 瀬戸際政策 (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · pl taktyka balansowania na krawędzi (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · pt peribelismo (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · de gewagtes Spiel (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · fi uhittelu (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · pt brinkmanship (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · ga bruachaireacht (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · tr tırmandırma siyaseti (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · ru балансирование на грани (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point) · cy dibynfentro (pursuit of an advantage by appearing to be willing to take a matter to the brink rather than to concede a point)