ax

Everyday

1. An ax is a tool with a heavy metal blade on a long handle, used for chopping wood. tree →
2. (informal) To ax something is to cancel it or cut it; to ax a worker is to fire them. tree →
3. In some old or dialect English, "ax" is another spelling of "ask". tree →

In the lessons

«Ax» is the American spelling; British, Irish, Canadian, Australian and NZ English usually write «axe». In history, Vikings fought with battle-axes. In news, «the show was axed» means cancelled. Safety: axes are very sharp and only for trained adults.

Examples

• The lumberjack swung his ax at the tree. tree →
• George Washington's story tells of a cherry tree and an ax. tree →
• The TV show was axed after one season. tree →
• Dad chopped firewood with an ax. tree →
• The firefighter broke down the door with an ax. tree →
• Hundreds of jobs were axed at the factory. tree →

Note

US spelling «ax»; elsewhere «axe». Plural: axes (pronounced like the plural of «axis», but «axes» of a graph is a different word). Past: axed.

In Jewish tradition

«Ax» is the American spelling; British, Irish, Canadian, Australian and NZ English usually write «axe». In history, Vikings fought with battle-axes. In news, «the show was axed» means cancelled. Safety: axes are very sharp and only for trained adults.

Examples

• § 11 Three vowels n"ax constitute a great secret, marvellous and hidden. (Mordell, The Origin of Letters and Numerals according to Sefer Yetzirah (1914)) tree →

Note

US spelling «ax»; elsewhere «axe». Plural: axes (pronounced like the plural of «axis», but «axes» of a graph is a different word). Past: axed.