In the English Vocabulary Profile,
on the threshold of sth = C2 at the start of a new and important time or development
be on the verge of sth/doing sth = C2 to be going to happen or to do something very soon
Here are the top 20 collocations of ‘on the verge of‘ in iWeb corpus:
*Notice how negative the context is.
1 BEING 2334
Actually, you‘re on the verge of being suspended.
2 COLLAPSE 1537
The economy in Iran is on the verge of collapse!
3 BECOMING 1145
4 TEARS 902
5 EXTINCTION 818
6 LOSING 762
7 DEATH 706
8 BANKRUPTCY 704
9 BREAKDOWN 694
10 BREAKING 595
11 NERVOUS 464
12 GIVING 366
13 SIGNING 345
14 FALLING 278
15 BREAKTHROUGH 273
16 SEEMED 270
17 STARVATION 238
18 WINNING 217
19 DYING 197
20 COMPLETING 193
on the threshold of (collocates):
1 STAND 144
2 STANDING 122
3 STANDS 84
4 ERA 67 ‘at’ is also possible:
We‘re at the threshold of a new era.
5 CENTURY 50
6 DOOR 50
7 AGE 47
8 STOOD 45
She stood on the threshold of womanhood.
9 POISED 38
10 MILLENNIUM 36
11 THIRD 36
12 BECOMING 35
13 DEATH 33
14 DREAM 29
15 ADULTHOOD 22
16 ETERNITY 20
17 DAGON 19
18 TREAD 19
19 ASHDOD 18
20 MANHOOD 18