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)
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
Jonathan Shorman, Kansas City Star, 28 Feb. 2025
Others include 200 workers in airport security and 400 employees in the airspace industry who got the axe.
—Erin Mansfield, USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2025
Read More: Inside the Chaos, Confusion, and Heartbreak of Trump’s Foreign-Aid Freeze
In mere days, the funding freeze has achieved what the Presidents of Russia and Belarus have desired for several decades: taking an axe to the remnants of independent media in the former Soviet countries.
—David Koranyi, TIME, 14 Feb. 2025
Musk has already taken an axe to U.S. Agency for International Development, the international humanitarian and development arm of the U.S. government, by essentially furloughing the majority of its staff and freezing its funding.
—Natasha Turak, CNBC, 13 Feb. 2025
Origin: Durango Class: Joven, Artisanal Milling: Hand pounded with an axe.
—Lauren Mowery, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
Her only ally is a mystical axe whose victims wind up as decapitated, talking heads.
—Ross Rosenfeld, Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2025
Aside from witnessing the chaotic competition, guests can witness and interact with alligators from Gatorland, try their hands at axe throwing, play knockerball (bubble soccer), attempt a Ninja Nation obstacle course and ride a mechanical gator.
—Patrick Connolly, Orlando Sentinel, 25 Feb. 2025
These are medical researchers, Grand Canyon Park Rangers, all of them right now, getting the axe.
—ABC News, 16 Feb. 2025
Naheed Rajwani-Dharsi, Axios, 10 Mar. 2025
Donald Trump is president again, politics are more divisive than ever, and bird flu threatens to become the next human pandemic, even as the president is axing science and social safety nets.
—Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 7 Mar. 2025
The sportswear giant was forced to axe the Yeezy line after terminating its partnership with Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, over a string of anti-Semitic remarks that the rapper made in 2022.
—Karen Gilchrist, CNBC, 5 Mar. 2025
After Netflix axed the project, Edelman compared his project to a scene from an Indiana Jones movie.
—Peter White, Deadline, 4 Mar. 2025
Walt Disney Animation Studios is axing its plans for the Tiana series.
—Esther Kang, People.com, 4 Mar. 2025
Walt Disney Animation Studios has axed its Tiana princess series, a show that would have featured Disney's first Black princess.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 4 Mar. 2025
The upcoming Folgore electric version of the MC20 is likely to be one of the first new models axed, despite being developed to production status.
—Michael Taylor, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
At The Ohio State University, 16 staff positions will be axed as its Office of Diversity and Inclusion and its Center for Belonging and Social Change are disbanded, university spokesperson Benjamin Johnson told CNN.
—Andy Rose and Maria Aguilar Prieto, CNN, 7 Mar. 2025
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 axe falls After applying last September, Hudgins-Bradley got a final offer in December.
—Jonathan Shorman, Kansas City Star, 28 Feb. 2025
Others include 200 workers in airport security and 400 employees in the airspace industry who got the axe.
—Erin Mansfield, USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2025
Read More: Inside the Chaos, Confusion, and Heartbreak of Trump’s Foreign-Aid Freeze
In mere days, the funding freeze has achieved what the Presidents of Russia and Belarus have desired for several decades: taking an axe to the remnants of independent media in the former Soviet countries.
—David Koranyi, TIME, 14 Feb. 2025
Musk has already taken an axe to U.S. Agency for International Development, the international humanitarian and development arm of the U.S. government, by essentially furloughing the majority of its staff and freezing its funding.
—Natasha Turak, CNBC, 13 Feb. 2025
Origin: Durango Class: Joven, Artisanal Milling: Hand pounded with an axe.
—Lauren Mowery, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
Her only ally is a mystical axe whose victims wind up as decapitated, talking heads.
—Ross Rosenfeld, Newsweek, 26 Feb. 2025
Aside from witnessing the chaotic competition, guests can witness and interact with alligators from Gatorland, try their hands at axe throwing, play knockerball (bubble soccer), attempt a Ninja Nation obstacle course and ride a mechanical gator.
—Patrick Connolly, Orlando Sentinel, 25 Feb. 2025
These are medical researchers, Grand Canyon Park Rangers, all of them right now, getting the axe.
—ABC News, 16 Feb. 2025
Verb
Between the lines: Goldman is among several companies that have axed diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives after conservative blowback and a series of court rulings questioning quotas.
—Naheed Rajwani-Dharsi, Axios, 10 Mar. 2025
Donald Trump is president again, politics are more divisive than ever, and bird flu threatens to become the next human pandemic, even as the president is axing science and social safety nets.
—Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 7 Mar. 2025
The sportswear giant was forced to axe the Yeezy line after terminating its partnership with Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, over a string of anti-Semitic remarks that the rapper made in 2022.
—Karen Gilchrist, CNBC, 5 Mar. 2025
After Netflix axed the project, Edelman compared his project to a scene from an Indiana Jones movie.
—Peter White, Deadline, 4 Mar. 2025
Walt Disney Animation Studios is axing its plans for the Tiana series.
—Esther Kang, People.com, 4 Mar. 2025
Walt Disney Animation Studios has axed its Tiana princess series, a show that would have featured Disney's first Black princess.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 4 Mar. 2025
The upcoming Folgore electric version of the MC20 is likely to be one of the first new models axed, despite being developed to production status.
—Michael Taylor, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2025
At The Ohio State University, 16 staff positions will be axed as its Office of Diversity and Inclusion and its Center for Belonging and Social Change are disbanded, university spokesperson Benjamin Johnson told CNN.
—Andy Rose and Maria Aguilar Prieto, CNN, 7 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Axe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/axe. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
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