ex
preposition
without, not including, or without the right to have.
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ex
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EX
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ex-
ex-a prefix meaning “out of,” “from,” and hence “utterly,” “thoroughly,” and sometimes meaning “not” or “without” or indicating a former title, status, etc.; freely used as an English formative: exstipulate; exterritorial; ex-president (former president); ex-member; ex-wife .
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ex.
ex.abbreviationexamination.
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Ex.
Ex.abbreviationExodus.
ex
1 American
[eks]
/ ɛks /
preposition
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Finance. without, not including, or without the right to have.
ex interest; ex rights.
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Commerce. free of charges to the purchaser until the time of removal from a specified place or thing.
ex ship; ex warehouse; ex elevator.
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(in U.S. colleges and universities) from, but not graduated with, the class of.
ex '47.
ex
2
American
[eks]
/ ɛks /
noun
Informal.
ex
3
American
[eks]
/ ɛks /
noun
ex
4
American
[eks]
/ ɛks /
adjective
Slang.
EX
5
American
abbreviation
ex-
6
American
ex-
7
American
ex-
8
American
ex.
9
American
abbreviation
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examination.
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examined.
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example.
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except.
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exception.
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exchange.
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excursion.
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executed.
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executive.
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express.
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extra.
Ex.
10
American
abbreviation
Bible.
ex-
1
British
prefix
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out of; outside of; from
exclosure
exurbia
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former
ex-wife
ex
2
British
/ ɛks /
preposition
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finance not participating in; excluding; without
ex bonus
ex dividend
ex rights
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commerce without charge to the buyer until removed from
ex quay
ex ship
ex works
ex
3
British
/ ɛks /
noun
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informal (a person's) former wife, husband, etc
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short for examination
Ex.
4
British
abbreviation
ex-
5
British
combining form
Etymology
Origin of ex1
First recorded in 1835–45; from Latin; see ex- 1
Origin of ex2
First recorded in 1820–30; by shortening
Origin of ex4
First recorded in 1920–25; by shortening
Origin of ex-6
< Latin, combining form of ex, ē (preposition) out (of ), from, beyond
Origin of ex-8
From Greek combining form of ex, ek, “out (of), from, beyond”; see ec-, ex- 1
Vocabulary lists containing ex
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
You know their favourite restaurant, what happened with their ex and their most embarrassing childhood story.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
Jumping between past and present, the film tells the story of Alex Serian, a cellist who moves to Los Angeles to care for his dying mother and escape an overbearing ex played by Olivia Wilde.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
While speaking to The Cut in 2025, Ortega recalled going through belongings at the property when she discovered an old toothbrush that had belonged to an ex.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 25, 2026
Remember how Ted’s inability to get over Michelle in previous seasons coincided with the very public, acrimonious conflict between the show’s star and his ex?
From Salon ● Sep. 10, 2026
In honor of Miss Barrie, my eighth-grade teacher, I’d like to call attention to the quotation above: ex ovo omnia.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
Castelo said she bought two pairs for herself, including a pair of Delegation EX, a modern twist on classic shoes worn by Japanese athletes in the 1960s.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026
It added it would have a long bonnet to give it a "torpedo-shaped form", drawing inspiration from the company's experimental cars of the 1920s, known as EX models, and the Art Deco era.
From BBC ● Apr. 14, 2026
In EX Hydrae, the magnetic field is not strong enough to direct all incoming material onto the star's magnetic poles.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 8, 2026
He tells me it is my job to work it out with his EX.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 6, 2022
EX PEC TA' TION, hope; a looking for.
From Sanders' Union Fourth Reader by Charles W. Sanders
“Integrating Europe’s capital markets to better channel high household savings towards productive investments in the EU will be essential,” ex- European Central Bank President Mario Draghi concluded in his landmark 2024 report on continental competitiveness.
From Barron's ● Mar. 30, 2026
He established that Natalie's dog River was a puppy of her ex- boyfriend's dog and that the former couple had, for a time, lived together in her Silverwood Green home.
From BBC ● Mar. 4, 2026
The iHeartMedia release added that the ex- “GMA” personalities — who have since been replaced — will work together on additional iHeartPodcasts programming.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2023
An ex- commander of the rebel Free Syrian Army was also sanctioned.
From Reuters ● Mar. 28, 2023
Palmares was just the most visible example of the maroon communities that ex- isted in all the sugar lands.
From "Sugar Changed the World: A Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom, and Science" by Marc Aronson
“And weird that you’re friends with your ex. Why do you need so much male attention? It’s a huge red flag. I mean, haven’t you seen ‘When Harry Met Sally’?
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 22, 2024
“On the outside world, I would never date a friend’s ex. I would never befriend your ex.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2023
“A lot of people I’ve talked to are saying this reminds me of my ex. This reminds me of how my ex responded to the breakup,” she said.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 13, 2022
Melania responded with a statement including the lines: "There is clearly no substance to this statement from an ex. Unfortunately only attention seeking and self-serving noise."
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2017
These charms were possessed of various degrees of virtue, ex. gratiae.
From The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction Volume 13, No. 355, February 7, 1829 by Various
Ex.: “...then my roommate walked in and he... etc.”
From Slate ● Jun. 20, 2016
The law regarding injuries inflicted upon a man in a quarrel is parallel with Ex. xxi.
From The Old Testament In the Light of The Historical Records and Legends of Assyria and Babylonia by Theophilus Goldridge Pinches
So far as the Garden Ex. was concerned, his attitude from the first had been one of sympathetic discouragement.
From The Book of Susan A Novel by Lee Wilson Dodd
The first: "A bone of him shall not be broken," is merely the prescription with regard to the Paschal lamb, Ex. xii.
From Supernatural Religion, Vol. III. (of III) An Inquiry into the Reality of Divine Revelation by Walter Richard Cassels
This is recognized by Wellhausen, who says that our decalogue stands to that of Ex. xxxiv. as Amos stood to his contemporaries, whose whole religion lay in the observance of sacred feasts.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 10 "David, St" to "Demidov" by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
