ax

1 of 2

noun

variant spelling of axe entry 1, axe entry 2

1

: a cutting tool that consists of a heavy edged head fixed to a handle with the edge parallel to the handle and that is used especially for felling trees and chopping and splitting wood

2

: a hammer with a sharp edge for dressing (see dress entry 1 sense 6e) or spalling stone

3

informal

a

: removal from office or release from employment : dismissal

—usually used with the

Employees with poor evaluations got the axe.

Trump quickly gave him the ax [=fired him] for his incompetence.

—Laura Petrecca

b

: abrupt elimination or severe reduction of something

Unlimited expense accounts, signing bonuses, and office plants—all are getting the ax [=being cut or eliminated] thanks to corporate cost-cutting measures.

—Amanda Hinnant

No party was brave enough to offend its supporters by taking an axe to [=severely reducing] expenditure.

—The Economist

4

slang : any of several musical instruments (such as a guitar or a saxophone)

ax

2 of 2

abbreviation

1

axiom

2

axis

Examples of ax in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Most historians believe Gunness would first poison her suitors, then finish them with an ax or by bludgeoning — afterward dismembering the corpses and burying what remained. —Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 11 Oct. 2025

Borden was famously tried and acquitted of the 1892 ax murders of her father and stepmother in Fall River, Massachusetts. —Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 9 Oct. 2025

There’s a man standing with an ax, who has just chopped up a custom vintage antique cupboard. —Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 9 Oct. 2025

Ryan Murphy has an ax to grind. —Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 9 Oct. 2025

Rhymes for ax

• axe
• backs
• blacks
• cracks
• fax
• flax
• hacks
• jacks
• knacks
• lacks
• lakhs
• lax

Kids Definition

ax

noun

variants or axe

ˈaks

: a cutting tool that consists of a heavy edged head attached to a handle and that is used for chopping and splitting wood

Medical Definition

ax

abbreviation

axis

Biographical Definition

Ax

biographical name

ˈaks 

Emanuel 1949–     American (Ukrainian-born of Polish parents) pianist