ex

1 of 8

noun (1)

: one that formerly held a specified position or place
especially : a former spouse or former partner in an intimate relationship

ex

2 of 8

noun (2)

: the letter x

ex

3 of 8

preposition

1
: out of : from: such as
a
: from a specified place or source
b
: from a specified dam
a promising calf by Eric XVI ex Heatherbell
2
: free from : without: such as
a
: without an indicated value or right
used especially of securities
b
: free of charges precedent to removal from the specified place with purchaser to provide means of subsequent transportation
ex dock

ex

4 of 8

abbreviation (1)

1
example
2
exchange
3
executive
4
express
5
extra

Ex

5 of 8

abbreviation (2)

Exodus

ex-

6 of 8

prefix (1)

e,
 also occurs in this prefix where only  i,
 is shown below (as in "express") and  ks,
 sometimes occurs where only  is shown (as in "exact") gz
1
: out of : outside
exclave
2
: not
exstipulate
3
(ˌ)eks,
ˈeks
: former
ex-president

ex-

7 of 8

combining form

see exo-

ex-

8 of 8

prefix (2)

variants or before consonants ec-
: out of : away : off
eccentric
ectopic

Examples of ex in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Her ex, Hubert (Hubert Deschamps), who is her child’s father, can’t get Janine out of his mind. Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2023 The party also happened to be attended by yet another one of his exes, Olivia Flowers. Jodi Guglielmi, Rolling Stone, 21 Sep. 2023 Choose a comfortable position to relax the anal sphincter (ex: spooning, riding), and start slow. Dominique Fluker, Essence, 21 Sep. 2023 While that reasoning was highly disputed by internet sleuths, Jonas might have just been preemptively preparing himself for the inevitable: his two exes grabbing a li’l din-din together. Vulture, 20 Sep. 2023 Miranda Kerr is expecting her fourth child, and recently opened up about co-parenting with ex-husband Orlando Bloom. Lisa Respers France, CNN, 17 Sep. 2023 The women have all been posting fashionable — and hilarious — behind-the-scenes content from the trip, including a TikTok from Jenner that recreated a memorable interaction between her mom, Kris Jenner, and her sister Kourtney Kardashian’s ex Scott Disick. Julia Moore, Peoplemag, 27 Aug. 2023 Instead, Miranda calls Carrie to try to wiggle out of 'The Last Supper' as both her exes are attending — and Carrie refuses to be understanding. Keryn Donnelly, refinery29.com, 25 Aug. 2023 Even so, Turner downplayed the significance of the reunion, suggesting his prior experiences bouncing between teams early in his career made the sight of ex-teammates relatively easy to digest. Alex Speier, BostonGlobe.com, 25 Aug. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ex.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

ex- entry 1

Preposition

Latin

Prefix (1)

borrowed from Latin ex- (before vowels and voiceless consonants), ē- (from *egz-, before voiced consonants), from ex, ē, preposition, "out of, from," going back to Indo-European *h1eḱ-s or *h1eǵh-s, whence also Old Irish a, as "out of, from," Middle Welsh ech, Greek ex, ek, Lithuanian ìš, ìž, Old Church Slavic iz (with unexplained i in Balto-Slavic); (sense 3) borrowed from Late Latin, as in exconsul "former consul," based on Latin ex in the sense "from being, having formerly held (an office)," as in ex assessōre praefectus praetōriī "advanced from the position of judge's assistant to commander of the Praetorian Guard" (Suetonius)

Prefix (2)

borrowed from Greek ex-, ek-, from ex, ek, preposition, "out of, from" — more at ex- entry 1

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1827, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

1818, in the meaning defined above

Preposition

circa 1755, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of ex was circa 1755

Dictionary Entries Near ex

Cite this Entry

“Ex.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ex. Accessed 2 Oct. 2023.

Kids Definition

ex-

1 of 2 prefix
(ˌ)eks,
ˈeks
: former
ex-president

ex-

2 of 2
see exo-
Etymology

Prefix

from earlier ex- (prefix), from Latin ex- "out of, from"

Medical Definition

ex

abbreviation
1
examined
2
example
3
exercise

Legal Definition

ex-

1 of 2 prefix
: free from : without

Ex.

2 of 2 abbreviation
Exchequer
Etymology

Prefix

Latin ex from, out of

More from Merriam-Webster on ex

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!