Synonyms of axes

axes 1 of 3

noun (1)

plural of ax

as in dismissals

the termination of the employment of an employee or a work force often temporarily

the company was hemorrhaging money, so 700 employees would soon be given the ax

Synonyms & Similar Words

• dismissals
• firings
• furloughs
• layoffs
• redundancies
• discharges
• boots
• sacks
• pink slips
• birds
• closings
• shutdowns
• bum's rushes
• shakeouts
• heave-hos
• shake-ups

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• callbacks
• recalls
• rehires
• reemployments

axes

2 of 3

noun (2)

plural of axis

1

as in centers

a thing or place that is of greatest importance to an activity or interest

in addition to being the suburb's social axis, the country club is the place where deals are made and partnerships are forged

Synonyms & Similar Words

• centers
• capitals
• hubs
• foci
• meccas
• bases
• nuclei
• hearts
• seats
• cores
• nexuses
• loci
• epicenters
• centrals
• playgrounds
• nerve centers
• headquarters
• navels
• ground zeros
• eyes
• cynosures
• omphali
• hot spots
• magnets
• kernels
• hives
• hotbeds
• nubs
• essences
• attractions
• lodestones
• piths
• thicks
• happy hunting grounds
• deeps
• playlands
• souls
• polestars
• quintessences

2

as in alliances

an association of persons, parties, or states for mutual assistance and protection

an axis of previously nonaligned nations

Synonyms & Similar Words

• alliances
• unions
• coalitions
• confederacies
• leagues
• federations
• combinations
• groups
• partnerships
• combines
• blocs
• confederations
• blocks
• organizations
• associations
• factions
• wings
• sides
• cartels
• fusions
• conspiracies
• fronts
• affiliations
• cooperatives
• cabals
• syndicates
• trusts
• conferences
• juntos
• circuits

axes

3 of 3

verb

present tense third-person singular of ax

as in sacks

to let go from office, service, or employment

the boss will ax anyone who leaks company secrets

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sacks
• fires
• removes
• dismisses
• releases
• retires
• cans
• discharges
• terminates
• turns off
• pink-slips
• excesses
• bounces
• musters out
• shows (someone) the door
• trims
• cashiers
• boots (out)
• lays off
• sends packing
• furloughs
• downsizes
• kicks out
• drums (out)
• separates
• throws out
• unseats
• chucks (out)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• employs
• signs (up or on)
• engages
• retains
• hires
• takes on
• keeps
• contracts
• recruits
• reemploys
• rehires
• subcontracts

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of axes

Noun

European police agency Europol says museum heists are becoming more violent, with sledgehammers, axes, crowbars and even explosives used for break-ins and to smash display cases. — ABC News, 10 Sep. 2026

All these new axes and viewing options bring with them more coding and content-delivery quirks. — Eric Vilas-Boas, Vulture, 10 Sep. 2026

Personal bias … petty jealousies … vendettas … cronyism … axes to grind. — Steve Buckley, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2026

This geometry allows the carrier to flex smoothly across three axes, providing radial rotation of up to ±450 degrees per meter depending on the model size. — IEEE Spectrum, 3 Sep. 2026

Hikers need to know how to use ropes, crampons and ice axes to hike the mountain. — Caroline Zimmerman, Kansas City Star, 27 Aug. 2026

Its arrow exists in a three-dimensional Hilbert space, where the three axes represent the three possible future colors. — Quanta Magazine, 26 Aug. 2026

Australian colonial officers had brought new tools, like steel knives and axes, as well as prohibitions—against armed warfare and cannibalism—to some villages. — Rachel Aviv, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026

The discovery, made at radio wavelengths with ALMA, the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array in Chile, could explain why astronomers keep finding planets with orbits that are drastically misaligned with the rotational axes of their stars. — Keith Cooper, Space.com, 17 Aug. 2026

Verb

Continue reading … BADGE DRAIN — Seattle axes $50K police bonuses while sitting hundreds of officers short. — FOXNews.com, 4 Sep. 2026

The passed by Republicans last month axes the credits for projects that don’t begin producing electricity by 2028. — Rachel Frazin, The Hill, 15 Aug. 2025