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)
see also:
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
Saleen Martin,
USA Today,
27 June 2026
But the first to get the axe was Mendoza.
—
Ryan Morik,
FOXNews.com,
26 June 2026
The axe came down swiftly and brutally, but, speaking candidly, Geoff Daniels, PBS’ Vice President, Programming & Development, was gracious about it, thanking the audience of mostly media industry people for their camaraderie.
—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
25 June 2026
In April 2026, Deadline confirmed that the young adult series The Runarounds was the first show to get the axe.
—
Caroline Blair,
PEOPLE,
23 June 2026
Much like Jesse's Service Weapon in the original, Aberrant can morph into multiple kinds of weapons, such as dual swords, an axe, and a scythe.
—
George Yang,
Space.com,
22 June 2026
Besides golf there is fishing, hiking, stargazing, croquet, crafts classes, fitness classes, clay shooting, axe throwing, archery, pickleball and even rock climbing.
—
Larry Olmsted,
Forbes.com,
21 June 2026
On Wednesday, news broke that Netflix has dropped the axe on the sci-fi series less than one month after its release (and with mere days left in Emmy voting).
—
Tony Maglio,
HollywoodReporter,
18 June 2026
This isn’t the first time the Knightscope robot has gotten the axe.
—
Frank Landymore,
Futurism,
17 June 2026
Ashley Hume,
FOXNews.com,
14 June 2026
Teamster leadership axed Baird and Cirkelis from their roles in the boycott in 1975 over their ties to the United Farm Workers, and Local 888 was dissolved not long after.
—
H.m.a. Leow,
JSTOR Daily,
12 June 2026
Most of the questioning from Democrats focused on staffing levels at the agency, which saw thousands of workers axed as part of the Department of Government Efficiency‘s efforts to downsize the federal government.
—
Molly Parks,
The Washington Examiner,
10 June 2026
Senate Republicans separately axed a last-minute attempt to include $1 billion in ballroom funding in a spending bill, following significant public backlash.
—
Catherina Gioino,
Fortune,
9 June 2026
But with the series mothballed for more than a year prior to being officially axed, Meloni has not been resting on his laurels.
—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
8 June 2026
Producer Heidi Anderson-Swan says James Handy's final movie project has officially been axed after the late actor's murder.
—
Mekishana Pierre,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 June 2026
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
Trump himself has not publicly commented on the compensation fund getting axed.
—
ABC News,
3 June 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.
Send us feedback.
Noun
The book included details about the Lizzie Borden murder case, in which Borden was accused of murdering her family with an axe.
—
Saleen Martin,
USA Today,
27 June 2026
But the first to get the axe was Mendoza.
—
Ryan Morik,
FOXNews.com,
26 June 2026
The axe came down swiftly and brutally, but, speaking candidly, Geoff Daniels, PBS’ Vice President, Programming & Development, was gracious about it, thanking the audience of mostly media industry people for their camaraderie.
—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
25 June 2026
In April 2026, Deadline confirmed that the young adult series The Runarounds was the first show to get the axe.
—
Caroline Blair,
PEOPLE,
23 June 2026
Much like Jesse's Service Weapon in the original, Aberrant can morph into multiple kinds of weapons, such as dual swords, an axe, and a scythe.
—
George Yang,
Space.com,
22 June 2026
Besides golf there is fishing, hiking, stargazing, croquet, crafts classes, fitness classes, clay shooting, axe throwing, archery, pickleball and even rock climbing.
—
Larry Olmsted,
Forbes.com,
21 June 2026
On Wednesday, news broke that Netflix has dropped the axe on the sci-fi series less than one month after its release (and with mere days left in Emmy voting).
—
Tony Maglio,
HollywoodReporter,
18 June 2026
This isn’t the first time the Knightscope robot has gotten the axe.
—
Frank Landymore,
Futurism,
17 June 2026
Verb
In May, Stewart axed two Las Vegas residency performances while recovering from a sinus infection and undergoing vocal rest.
—
Ashley Hume,
FOXNews.com,
14 June 2026
Teamster leadership axed Baird and Cirkelis from their roles in the boycott in 1975 over their ties to the United Farm Workers, and Local 888 was dissolved not long after.
—
H.m.a. Leow,
JSTOR Daily,
12 June 2026
Most of the questioning from Democrats focused on staffing levels at the agency, which saw thousands of workers axed as part of the Department of Government Efficiency‘s efforts to downsize the federal government.
—
Molly Parks,
The Washington Examiner,
10 June 2026
Senate Republicans separately axed a last-minute attempt to include $1 billion in ballroom funding in a spending bill, following significant public backlash.
—
Catherina Gioino,
Fortune,
9 June 2026
But with the series mothballed for more than a year prior to being officially axed, Meloni has not been resting on his laurels.
—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
8 June 2026
Producer Heidi Anderson-Swan says James Handy's final movie project has officially been axed after the late actor's murder.
—
Mekishana Pierre,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 June 2026
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
Trump himself has not publicly commented on the compensation fund getting axed.
—
ABC News,
3 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Axe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/axe. Accessed 28 Jun. 2026.
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