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
Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 1 May 2025
Trump felled so much timber not because of the mightiness of his axe but because of the rot within the trees and the weakness of the wood.
—Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
That date comes a day after the duty-free de minimis provision for all goods out of China officially gets the axe—further driving a stake into the ambitions of e-commerce players like Shein and Temu that flew low-value shipments directly to the U.S. without paying taxes.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 11 Apr. 2025
What Happens The axe falls, and the first wave is shock.
—Jack Kelly, Forbes.com, 8 Apr. 2025
Unlike the Trump administration’s current approach to education and other issues, no axe swinging when kids’ futures are at stake.
—Ryan Craig, Forbes, 21 Mar. 2025
Styr memorably beat the heck out of Jon Snow (Kit Harington) in a hand-to-hand battle before Snow fatally placed his axe in Styr's head.
—Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 4 Apr. 2025
The King’s guards arrive just as the last chest is delivered and the Troll uses his axe to hack down the rope bridge.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 3 Apr. 2025
That glimmer of hope is immediately extinguished, however, when Lottie (Courtney Eaton) buries an axe into Edwin’s skull.
—Michaela Zee, Variety, 21 Mar. 2025
Katie Lauer, Mercury News, 7 May 2025
More announcements of a similar nature are expected; in late April and early May (Weeks 17-19), over 25 percent of weekly service-loops have already been axed.
—Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 6 May 2025
Smoking and drugs The Health and Human Services cuts eliminated the 17-member team responsible for the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, one of the main ways the government measures drug use.
Also axed were the CDC staff working on the National Youth Tobacco Survey.
—Mike Stobbe, Los Angeles Times, 4 May 2025
Now, the group have been forced to cancel another date as Meine’s condition fails to improve, with the band again noting that their appearance at the Monsters of Rock festival in Bogotá, Colombia has now been axed.
—Tyler Jenke, Billboard, 1 May 2025
Amber Ruffin reflected on being axed from the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on a new episode of The Late Show.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 30 Apr. 2025
But the White House then took direct control of the daily rotation of reporters in the pool, axing the permanent spot for wire services such as AP, and adding two print media reporters and a new media position instead.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Apr. 2025
Some of the unnecessary side-plots could have been axed to make more time for the audience to get to know her story (and hear her belt!).
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 12 Apr. 2025
The Trump administration's restructuring of the federal bureaucracy by cutting funds and axing entire departments is reverberating across Portland and the state.
—Kale Williams, Axios, 9 Apr. 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
But fans are divided over who might get the axe in the season 22 finale, and Torres isn't the clear frontrunner.
—Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 1 May 2025
Trump felled so much timber not because of the mightiness of his axe but because of the rot within the trees and the weakness of the wood.
—Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
That date comes a day after the duty-free de minimis provision for all goods out of China officially gets the axe—further driving a stake into the ambitions of e-commerce players like Shein and Temu that flew low-value shipments directly to the U.S. without paying taxes.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 11 Apr. 2025
What Happens The axe falls, and the first wave is shock.
—Jack Kelly, Forbes.com, 8 Apr. 2025
Unlike the Trump administration’s current approach to education and other issues, no axe swinging when kids’ futures are at stake.
—Ryan Craig, Forbes, 21 Mar. 2025
Styr memorably beat the heck out of Jon Snow (Kit Harington) in a hand-to-hand battle before Snow fatally placed his axe in Styr's head.
—Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 4 Apr. 2025
The King’s guards arrive just as the last chest is delivered and the Troll uses his axe to hack down the rope bridge.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 3 Apr. 2025
That glimmer of hope is immediately extinguished, however, when Lottie (Courtney Eaton) buries an axe into Edwin’s skull.
—Michaela Zee, Variety, 21 Mar. 2025
Verb
Related Articles Opinion: Why American democracy and prosperity depend on mathematical literacy
San Jose school district parcel tax continues to trail
Budget cuts heighten concerns for West Contra Costa English learners
Trump won’t axe Head Start.
—Katie Lauer, Mercury News, 7 May 2025
More announcements of a similar nature are expected; in late April and early May (Weeks 17-19), over 25 percent of weekly service-loops have already been axed.
—Kate Nishimura, Sourcing Journal, 6 May 2025
Smoking and drugs The Health and Human Services cuts eliminated the 17-member team responsible for the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, one of the main ways the government measures drug use.
Also axed were the CDC staff working on the National Youth Tobacco Survey.
—Mike Stobbe, Los Angeles Times, 4 May 2025
Now, the group have been forced to cancel another date as Meine’s condition fails to improve, with the band again noting that their appearance at the Monsters of Rock festival in Bogotá, Colombia has now been axed.
—Tyler Jenke, Billboard, 1 May 2025
Amber Ruffin reflected on being axed from the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on a new episode of The Late Show.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 30 Apr. 2025
But the White House then took direct control of the daily rotation of reporters in the pool, axing the permanent spot for wire services such as AP, and adding two print media reporters and a new media position instead.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Apr. 2025
Some of the unnecessary side-plots could have been axed to make more time for the audience to get to know her story (and hear her belt!).
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 12 Apr. 2025
The Trump administration's restructuring of the federal bureaucracy by cutting funds and axing entire departments is reverberating across Portland and the state.
—Kale Williams, Axios, 9 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Axe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/axe. Accessed 20 May. 2025.
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