variants
or ax
plural axes
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
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
Amanda HinnantNo party was brave enough to offend its supporters by taking an axe to [=severely reducing] expenditure.—The Economist
The Economist4
slang
: any of several musical instruments (such as a guitar or a saxophone)
variants
or ax
axed; axing; axes
1
a
: to shape, dress (see dress entry 1 sense 6e), or trim with an axe
axe stone
b
: to chop, split, or sever with an axe
axe branches from a tree
2
informal
: to remove abruptly (as from employment or from a budget)
The TV program was axed from the new schedule.
Examples of axe in a Sentence
Noun
the company was hemorrhaging money, so 700 employees would soon be given the ax
Verb
The boss told him that he had been axed.
the boss will ax anyone who leaks company secrets
Recent Examples on the Web
Ben Travers, IndieWire, 19 June 2025
Disney is swinging the axe again, laying off several hundred employees globally across multiple teams.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 2 June 2025
Clapton, who actually owned the instrument, and Harrison can be seen with the axe in a private songwriting session back in October 1968.
—Nicole Hoey, Robb Report, 20 May 2025
Listen to this article The San Diego police officer who shot and wounded a man allegedly armed with an axe in Pacific Beach was identified Wednesday.
—Christian Martinez, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 May 2025
In contrast to the grave with the two females, archaeologists do not believe the man died violently; rather, the axe was likely left as a grave offering.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 10 June 2025
From an axe to a sudsy bar of soap, the thing that appears on each cover is drawn from a story, poem, or essay in the issue and could be recognizable anywhere.
—Kei Lim
june 9, Literary Hub, 9 June 2025
Another prom queen candidate, the drug-dealing bad girl Christy (Ariana Greenblatt), takes an axe to the back.
—Randall Colburn, EW.com, 23 May 2025
Craig experiences that same temporal shift two other times in the film: When staring at a bouquet of Tami’s flowers, and while holding an ancient stone axe Austin has bought online.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 22 May 2025
EW.com, 19 June 2025
The Supreme Court rejected Texas’s bid to axe federal approval of a nuclear waste storage facility, arguing the state did not have the right to bring its challenge in the first place.
—Rachel Frazin, The Hill, 18 June 2025
Some lobbied to axe the controversial surveillance and instead use the money to keep libraries and parks open.
—Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2025
Wu is now Cupertino’s fourth city manager to be axed since 2018.
—Stephanie Lam, Mercury News, 9 June 2025
At the time she was axed, Mia was working for the mogul’s film imprint, Revolt Films, on a documentary looking at the history of Bad Boy Records.
—Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 30 May 2025
But there also is plenty to be said about Micky Arison and his family acting with the type of patience and prudence not seen when James Dolan and the Knicks summarily axed Tom Thibodeau in the wake of New York advancing to the conference finals for the first time in a quarter century.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 11 June 2025
The Kennedy Center’s president, Deborah Rutter, also was axed, and Trump himself became chairman, ousting David Rubenstein.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 11 June 2025
The network, offended by one of Laura’s cynical zingers, that marriages are not made in Heaven, axed the show after a single episode.
—Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 9 June 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Noun
Toss in an uncaring government agent with an axe to grind.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 19 June 2025
Disney is swinging the axe again, laying off several hundred employees globally across multiple teams.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 2 June 2025
Clapton, who actually owned the instrument, and Harrison can be seen with the axe in a private songwriting session back in October 1968.
—Nicole Hoey, Robb Report, 20 May 2025
Listen to this article The San Diego police officer who shot and wounded a man allegedly armed with an axe in Pacific Beach was identified Wednesday.
—Christian Martinez, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 May 2025
In contrast to the grave with the two females, archaeologists do not believe the man died violently; rather, the axe was likely left as a grave offering.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 10 June 2025
From an axe to a sudsy bar of soap, the thing that appears on each cover is drawn from a story, poem, or essay in the issue and could be recognizable anywhere.
—Kei Lim
june 9, Literary Hub, 9 June 2025
Another prom queen candidate, the drug-dealing bad girl Christy (Ariana Greenblatt), takes an axe to the back.
—Randall Colburn, EW.com, 23 May 2025
Craig experiences that same temporal shift two other times in the film: When staring at a bouquet of Tami’s flowers, and while holding an ancient stone axe Austin has bought online.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 22 May 2025
Verb
The star was supposed to play the mother to Ophelia Sage (Blake Lively), but was axed in the editing process.
—EW.com, 19 June 2025
The Supreme Court rejected Texas’s bid to axe federal approval of a nuclear waste storage facility, arguing the state did not have the right to bring its challenge in the first place.
—Rachel Frazin, The Hill, 18 June 2025
Some lobbied to axe the controversial surveillance and instead use the money to keep libraries and parks open.
—Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2025
Wu is now Cupertino’s fourth city manager to be axed since 2018.
—Stephanie Lam, Mercury News, 9 June 2025
At the time she was axed, Mia was working for the mogul’s film imprint, Revolt Films, on a documentary looking at the history of Bad Boy Records.
—Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 30 May 2025
But there also is plenty to be said about Micky Arison and his family acting with the type of patience and prudence not seen when James Dolan and the Knicks summarily axed Tom Thibodeau in the wake of New York advancing to the conference finals for the first time in a quarter century.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 11 June 2025
The Kennedy Center’s president, Deborah Rutter, also was axed, and Trump himself became chairman, ousting David Rubenstein.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 11 June 2025
The network, offended by one of Laura’s cynical zingers, that marriages are not made in Heaven, axed the show after a single episode.
—Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 9 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Axe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/axe. Accessed 8 Jul. 2025.
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