axing

verb

present participle of ax
as in sacking
to let go from office, service, or employment the boss will ax anyone who leaks company secrets

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of axing 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 More than a dozen are rumored to be on his shortlist for axing, after several more were voluntarily killed or amended to avoid the gallows. — Nick Coltrain, Denver Post, 15 May 2026 Brendan McDermid | Reuters Amazon is axing its Rufus chatbot and making its Alexa assistant the centerpiece of its artificial intelligence shopping strategy. — Annie Palmer, CNBC, 13 May 2026 Amazon has been laying off staff en masse this year, axing over 16,000 employees in 2026 so far. — Will McCurdy, PC Magazine, 2 May 2026 The city is also contemplating axing more than 94 vacant jobs. — Ishani Desai, Sacbee.com, 29 Apr. 2026 The biggest headline in Europe this week was German airline Lufthansa axing 20,000 flights through October. — Jordan Blum, Fortune, 24 Apr. 2026 Membership perks are also changing, with the city axing unlimited play time for annual members and removing reserved tee times that were always set aside for several longstanding golf associations in the city. — Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald, 17 Apr. 2026 Of course, dozens of companies have been axing staff and restructuring for a digital future, which is perhaps the BBC’s biggest challenge. — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 17 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for axing
  1. sacking
  2. removing
  3. dismissing
  4. firing
  5. retiring
  6. releasing
Verb
  • To an outsider, the scene may spark a certain Schadenfreude, like an army of tiny barbarians sacking Rome.
    — Burkhard Bilger, New Yorker, 29 June 2026
  • One source close to the squad, speaking anonymously to protect relationships, told The Athletic that the AUF considered sacking Bielsa around this period, aware of the ongoing issues with the squad.
    — Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 28 June 2026
Definition of sacking
Verb
  • Leaders add value by asking better questions, widening perspectives, connecting people, allocating resources and removing the obstacles that slow great work.
    — Brent McHugh, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026
  • The state added women to the workforce without removing men from their role as sole providers.
    — Wael Mahdi, semafor.com, 21 July 2026
Definition of removing
Verb
  • Sunday’s final will be his sixth World Cup match in total and first since dismissing Ecuador’s Piero Hincapie for covering his mouth while confronting Mexico’s Santiago Gimenez in the round of 32.
    — Dermot Corrigan, New York Times, 20 July 2026
  • In response, eBay's board wasted little time in dismissing the proposal.
    — Mark Faithfull, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
Definition of dismissing
Verb
  • Reached a second successive final with Argentina, almost single-handedly firing them there with eight goals (taking his tally to 15 goals from 15 matches in the past two tournaments).
    — Tim Spiers, New York Times, 21 July 2026
  • Day 2 Observations Dallas came out firing this weekend, crushing the Atlanta team in a 4-0 sweep where really only one of the four games was competitive.
    — Todd Boss, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
Definition of firing
Verb
  • Fricker went on to star in another ITV drama Seekers, 1994 sports comedy Angels in the Outfield, 1997’s Masterminds, and 2011’s Albert Nobbs, before retiring from big-screen roles in 2015.
    — Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 17 July 2026
  • The three-time Pro Bowl running back racked up 9,651 rushing yards and 55 rushing touchdowns in his NFL career, before retiring in 2017.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 July 2026
Definition of retiring
Verb
  • Tribute to Joshua McKee On Friday morning, hours before releasing basic details on McKee’s death, BPU on Facebook also posted a tribute and photo array in honor of the veteran lineman, while thanking the community for its support.
    — Eric Adler July 18, Kansas City Star, 18 July 2026
  • During the exercise, crews loaded 500-pound BDU-50 and 2,000-pound BDU-56 practice bombs onto the aircraft before releasing them over the Mountain Home bombing range.
    — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 18 July 2026
Definition of releasing

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axes
axing
axiom
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Cite this Entry

“Axing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/axing. Accessed 23 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on axing

Nglish: Translation of axing for Spanish Speakers

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