ax
or axe
[ aks ]
/ æks /
noun, plural ax·es [ak-siz] /ˈæk sɪz/.
an instrument with a bladed head on a handle or helve, used for hewing, cleaving, chopping, etc.
Jazz Slang.
any musical instrument.
the ax, Informal.
- dismissal from employment: to get the ax.
- expulsion from school.
- rejection by a lover, friend, etc.: His girlfriend gave him the ax.
- any usually summary removal or curtailment.
verb (used with object), axed, ax·ing.
to shape or trim with an ax.
to chop, split, destroy, break open, etc., with an ax: The firemen had to ax the door to reach the fire.
Informal.
to dismiss, restrict, or destroy brutally, as if with an ax: The main office axed those in the field who didn't meet their quota. Congress axed the budget.
Idioms for ax
have an ax to grind,
to have a personal or selfish motive: His interest may be sincere, but I suspect he has an ax to grind.
Origin of ax
before 1000; Middle English;
ax(e),
ex(e), Old English
æx, æces; akin to Gothic
aquizi, Old Norse
øx, ǫx, Old High German
acc(h)us, a(c)kus (German
Axt), Middle High German plural
exa < Germanic
*akwiz-, akuz-, aksi- ≪
*ákəs, áks-; Latin
ascia (<
*acsiā), Greek
axī́nē; < Indo-European
*ag-s-
OTHER WORDS FROM ax
ax·like, adjectiveDefinition for ax (2 of 3)
Definition for ax (3 of 3)
Example sentences from the Web for ax
Medical definitions for ax
ax
abbr.
axis
Idioms and Phrases with ax
ax