axe
verb
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
The boss told him that he had been axed.
the boss will ax anyone who leaks company secrets
Recent Examples on the Web
For the first time since temporarily axing the base model WRX for 2025, Subaru regained traction with its sport compact, with sales jumping 50% from a year ago.
—
Byron Hurd, The Drive, 4 June 2026
Additionally, last month saw correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega axed, along with executive producer Tanya Simon and other top producers.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 3 June 2026
Trump himself has not publicly commented on the compensation fund getting axed.
—ABC News, 3 June 2026
An e-commerce deal with Amazon, which helped the company buy Neiman’s, was axed.
—Evan Clark, Footwear News, 1 June 2026
The glow of television had reduced radio listenership, leading WNOX to axe their trademark shows in favor of Top 40 programming.
—Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 1 June 2026
Even the Surface Laptop Studio, which was supposed to replace the Surface Book, has been axed.
—Tom Warren, The Verge, 28 May 2026
Part of the decision to axe Destiny 2 now was to move more resources over to Marathon, now entering its second season.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
Numerous Democratic officeholders raised questions about whether Colbert was axed for political reasons.
—Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 18 May 2026
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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Byron Hurd, The Drive, 4 June 2026
Additionally, last month saw correspondents Sharyn Alfonsi and Cecilia Vega axed, along with executive producer Tanya Simon and other top producers.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 3 June 2026
Trump himself has not publicly commented on the compensation fund getting axed.
—ABC News, 3 June 2026
An e-commerce deal with Amazon, which helped the company buy Neiman’s, was axed.
—Evan Clark, Footwear News, 1 June 2026
The glow of television had reduced radio listenership, leading WNOX to axe their trademark shows in favor of Top 40 programming.
—Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 1 June 2026
Even the Surface Laptop Studio, which was supposed to replace the Surface Book, has been axed.
—Tom Warren, The Verge, 28 May 2026
Part of the decision to axe Destiny 2 now was to move more resources over to Marathon, now entering its second season.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
Numerous Democratic officeholders raised questions about whether Colbert was axed for political reasons.
—Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 18 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Axe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/axe. Accessed 10 Jun. 2026.
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