excise

1 of 3

noun

ex·​cise ˈek-ˌsīz How to pronounce excise (audio)
-ˌsīs
1
: an internal tax levied on the manufacture, sale, or consumption of a commodity
2
: any of various taxes on privileges often assessed in the form of a license or fee

excise

2 of 3

verb (1)

ex·​cise ˈek-ˌsīz How to pronounce excise (audio)
-ˌsīs,
ik-ˈsīz How to pronounce excise (audio)
excised; excising

transitive verb

: to impose an excise on

excise

3 of 3

verb (2)

ex·​cise ik-ˈsīz How to pronounce excise (audio)
excised; excising

transitive verb

: to remove by or as if by excision

Did you know?

Excise takes part of its meaning from the prefix ex-, "out". A writer may excise long passages of a novel to reduce it to a reasonable length, or a film director may excise a scene that might give offense. A surgeon may excise a large cancerous tumor, or make a tiny excision to examine an organ's tissue. Excise is also a noun, meaning a tax paid on something manufactured and sold in the U.S. Much of what consumers pay for tobacco or alcohol products go to cover the excise taxes that the state and federal government charge the manufacturers. But it's only accidental that this noun is spelled like the verb, since it comes from a completely different source.

Examples of excise in a Sentence

Noun an excise imposed on a number of goods
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The Justices will soon decide whether to hear Quinn v. Washington, a taxpayer challenge to the state’s excise shenanigan. The Editorial Board, WSJ, 19 Oct. 2023 Movies have long been chopped up to excise explicit scenes, sometimes including kissing, or on political or religious grounds. Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2023 Examples of regressive taxes include state sales taxes, excise taxes, user fees, payroll taxes and to some degree, property taxes. Olivia Munson, USA TODAY, 27 Mar. 2023 State excise taxes on fuel can send prices up or down, too. Mallika Mitra, wsj.com, 18 Oct. 2023 With the country’s finances shaken first by the pandemic, then a war in Europe, and finally its own disastrous mini-budget in September, the new government’s treasury chancellor elected to raise the excise duties on all alcoholic beverages. Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 20 June 2023 Martin said Carson, as a former Indiana state excise police officer, also wants to seek police reform in safety and accountability. The Indianapolis Star, 31 Oct. 2022 Apportionment of direct taxes is so impractical that Congress did not generally levy them, relying instead on tariffs, excise taxes, and the like to fund the early federal government. Matt Ford, The New Republic, 20 Sep. 2023 Money from several big infrastructure bills approved by Congress since Biden took office is rejuvenating that part of the Superfund program, as is the renewal of excise taxes on oil and certain chemicals to finance more investigations and cleanups. Michael Hawthorne, Chicago Tribune, 7 Sep. 2023
Verb
None of the tunes stuck out as particularly memorable, and many could be safely excised, including a nonsensical duet about SweeTarts sung by Deepali and one of her sisters. Rhoda Feng, New York Times, 20 Nov. 2023 Beyond that, there are many reasons Bonta and others being asked to excise Trump from the ballot should refuse. Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 20 Sep. 2023 Today, fat jokes have been carefully excised from the repertoires of most late-night hosts and tabloids, and mental health is generally treated as an open-source conversation, not a punchline. Leah Greenblatt, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2023 Sometimes they must be surgically excised for the pregnancy to continue. Rebecca Stewart, Parents, 6 Sep. 2023 Fanning’s storyline could be excised from the film completely without losing anything except the extratextual significance of seeing these actors together again. Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2023 Other subplots are excised or condensed, but the central love story remains intact. Jen Juneau, Peoplemag, 22 Aug. 2023 The film’s darker moments have been either lightened or excised in the stage musical version. David L. Coddon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Sep. 2023 But the court excised much of U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty's broad July 4 ruling, saying mere encouragement to take down content doesn't always cross a constitutional line. CBS News, 9 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'excise.' 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

obsolete Dutch excijs (now accijns), from Middle Dutch, probably modification of Old French assise session, assessment — more at assize

Verb (2)

Latin excisus, past participle of excidere, from ex- + caedere to cut

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (1)

1652, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

1634, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of excise was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near excise

Cite this Entry

“Excise.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/excise. Accessed 10 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

excise

1 of 2 noun
ex·​cise ˈek-ˌsīz How to pronounce excise (audio)
-ˌsīs
: a tax on the manufacture, sale, or use of certain goods within a country

excise

2 of 2 verb
ex·​cise ek-ˈsīz How to pronounce excise (audio)
excised; excising
: to remove by cutting out
excise a tumor
excision
-ˈsizh-ən
noun
Etymology

Noun

from obsolete Dutch excijs "tax," probably derived from early French assise "assessment"

Verb

from Latin excisus, past participle of excidere "to cut out," from ex- "out, out of" and caedere "to cut"

Medical Definition

excise

transitive verb
ex·​cise ik-ˈsīz How to pronounce excise (audio)
excised; excising
: to remove by excision : resect
excise a tumor

Legal Definition

excise

noun
1
: a tax levied on the manufacture, sale, or consumption of a commodity compare income tax, property tax
2
: any of various taxes on privileges often assessed in the form of a license or other fee compare direct tax
excise transitive verb
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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