axe means A river in Dorset, Somerset, and east Devon, England, which flows into Lyme Bay at Seaton.
axe is pronounced /æks/.
Why “axe” is a great word
A heavy, bladed tool for chopping wood, felling timber, or cleaving in combat. From Middle English ax, axe, from Old English æx, from Proto-Germanic *akusī, of uncertain deeper origin, though sometimes linked to a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "sharp." Unlike a hatchet, a compact tool for light work, or an adze, a right-angled blade for smoothing, an axe is the uncompromising instrument of severance. It is the arc of the blade catching light before the downstroke, the clean split of a log falling into two equal halves, and the grim silhouette raised against a besieged gate—a definitive answer to questions of connection, understanding that progress often requires the felling of what stands in the way.
Etymology
Ultimately derived from Proto-Brythonic *Uɨsk, a river name perhaps originally meaning "abundant in fish". Cognate with the river names Esk, Exe, and Usk.
name
- A river in Dorset, Somerset, and east Devon, England, which flows into Lyme Bay at Seaton.
- A river in Somerset, England, which flows into the Bristol Channel at Weston-super-Mare.
noun
- A tool for felling trees or chopping wood etc. consisting of a heavy head flattened to a blade on one side, and a handle attached to it.
- An ancient weapon consisting of a head that has one or two blades and a long handle.
- A dismissal or rejection.e.g.“His girlfriend/boss/schoolmaster gave him the axe.”
- A drastic reduction or cutback.e.g.“the Beeching Axe”
- A gigging musician's particular instrument, especially a guitar in rock music or a saxophone in jazz.
- A position, interest, or reason in buying and selling stock, often with ulterior motives.e.g.“A financial dealer has an axe in a stock that his buyers don't know about, giving him an advantage in making the most profit.”
- The axle of a wheel.
verb
- To fell or chop with an axe.
- To lay off, terminate or drastically reduce, especially in a rough or ruthless manner; to cancel.e.g.“The government announced its plans to axe public spending.”
- To furnish with an axle.
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.