ex

¹ American  

[eks] / ɛks /

preposition

1. Finance. without, not including, or without the right to have.

   ex interest; ex rights.

2. Commerce. free of charges to the purchaser until the time of removal from a specified place or thing.

   ex ship; ex warehouse; ex elevator.

3. (in U.S. colleges and universities) from, but not graduated with, the class of.

   ex '47.

---

ex ² American  

[eks] / ɛks /

noun

Informal.

1. a former spouse or a former partner in a long-term romantic relationship; ex-wife, ex-husband, or ex-lover.

---

ex ³ American  

[eks] / ɛks /

noun

1. the letter X, x.

---

ex ⁴ American  

[eks] / ɛks /

adjective

Slang.

1. excellent.

---

EX ⁵ American  

abbreviation

1. Biology, Ecology. extinct.

---

ex- ⁶ American  

1. 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 .

---

ex- ⁷ American  

1. variant of exo-.

---

ex- ⁸ American  

1. a prefix identical in meaning with ex- 1, occurring before vowels in words of Greek origin: exarch; exegesis .

---

ex. ⁹ American  

abbreviation

1. examination.

2. examined.

3. example.

4. except.

5. exception.

6. exchange.

7. excursion.

8. executed.

9. executive.

10. express.

11. extra.

---

Ex. ¹⁰ American  

abbreviation

Bible.

1. Exodus.

---

ex- ¹ British  

prefix

1. out of; outside of; from

   exclosure

   exurbia

2. former

   ex-wife

---

ex ² British  

/ ɛks /

preposition

1. finance not participating in; excluding; without

   ex bonus

   ex dividend

   ex rights

2. commerce without charge to the buyer until removed from

   ex quay

   ex ship

   ex works

---

ex ³ British  

/ ɛks /

noun

1. informal (a person's) former wife, husband, etc

2. short for examination

---

Ex. ⁴ British  

abbreviation

1. Exodus

---

ex- ⁵ British  

combining form

1. a variant of exo-

   exergonic

---

Etymology

Origin of ex¹

First recorded in 1835–45; from Latin; 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”; ec-, ex- ¹

Example Sentences

Another dealt with someone breaking up with them to get back with their ex, only to come crawling back.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

Heath Hirschi wanted out of paying $2,700 a month in spousal support payments after his ex married someone his legal team called a “well-known Hollywood actor.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

She responded, again, that she could not talk with him ex parte.

From Slate • Mar. 11, 2026

First, though, you have to learn to communicate with your ex.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 9, 2026

First about Lee Lee’s ex, because even though she can’t bear to see him, she can’t stop talking about him.

From "Piecing Me Together" by Renée Watson

Related Words

• earlier
• past
• preceding