ax

1 of 2

noun

variant spelling of axe entry 1, axe entry 2

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

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

No party was brave enough to offend its supporters by taking an axe to [=severely reducing] expenditure.

—The Economist

4

slang : any of several musical instruments (such as a guitar or a saxophone)

ax

2 of 2

abbreviation

1

axiom

2

axis

Examples of ax in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Now, 16 years after Noel ended Oasis in Paris — reportedly following a physical altercation backstage, during which Liam wielded a guitar like an ax — the brothers have made a point of starting each show by walking out onstage with their arms around each other. —Lori Majewski, Rolling Stone, 23 Nov. 2025

The third season of Tulsa King found Dwight squaring off against the violent (and desperate) Dunmire clan, as well as a vicious New York mafioso called Quiet Ray (James Russo) and an FBI agent with an ax to grind (Kevin Pollak). —Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Nov. 2025

Abbey then struck Kjersem with a block of wood and an ax and stabbed him with a screwdriver, prosecutors said. —Phil Helsel, NBC news, 13 Nov. 2025

One staffer says that the ax conspicuously fell on those whose reporting featured an anti-Israel bent, including foreign correspondent Debora Patta, who had been covering the war in Gaza for the past three years. —Tatiana Siegel, Variety, 4 Nov. 2025

Rhymes for ax

• axe
• backs
• blacks
• cracks
• fax
• flax
• hacks
• jacks
• knacks
• lacks
• lakhs
• lax

Kids Definition

ax

noun

variants or axe

ˈaks

: a cutting tool that consists of a heavy edged head attached to a handle and that is used for chopping and splitting wood

Medical Definition

ax

abbreviation

axis

Biographical Definition

Ax

biographical name

ˈaks 

Emanuel 1949–     American (Ukrainian-born of Polish parents) pianist