Standard Lemma guide

ex-

prefix · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ɛks/ hyphened always
  • /ɛks/ unhyphened with primary or secondary stress
  • before-vowel: /ɛɡz/
  • /ɪks/ unhyphened unstressed
  • before-vowel: /ɪɡz/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

prefix

Meaning 1

out of

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • borrowed from Latin: extract, expel, except, expression, exclusion

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

prefix

Meaning 2

outside

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • ex-directory; borrowed from Latin: exterior

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

prefix

Meaning 3

former

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • ex-husband, ex-president, ex-wife

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

prefix

Meaning 4

Without, not possessing; lacking.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Topics: biology, natural-sciences

Examples

  • excaudate, exstipulate

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h1éǵh Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *h1éǵhs Proto-Italic *eks Latin ex Latin ex-der. Middle French ex-bor. Middle English ex- English ex- From Middle English, from words borrowed from Middle French; from Latin ex (“out of, from”), from Proto-Indo-European *eǵ-, *eǵs- (“out”), *eǵhs. Cognate with Ancient Greek ἐξ (ex, “out of, from”), Transalpine Gaulish ex- (“out”), Old Irish ess- (“out”), Old Church Slavonic изъ (izŭ, “out”), Russian из (iz, “from, out of”). For sense 3 (“former”), compare sense 11 at Latin ex (indicates a change of state, (later) used before terms denoting an office to indicate that one has completed his term of office). It is probably a semantic extension from the sense of "out, away".

Across languages

Translations

35 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: ex- — former
  • Czech: ex- — former
  • Danish: eks- — former
  • Dutch: ex- — former
  • Esperanto: eks- — former
  • Estonian: endine — former
  • Finnish: entinen — former
  • Finnish: ex- — former
  • French: ex- — former
  • German: ex- — former
  • Greek: πρώην (próin) — former
  • Ancient Greek: γενόμενος (genómenos) — former
  • Hungarian: ex- — former
  • Icelandic: fyrrverandi — former
  • Ido: ex- — former
  • Indonesian: eks- — former
  • Irish: iar- — former
  • Old Irish: aith- — former
  • Japanese: 前 (zen-) — former
  • Japanese: 旧 (kyū-) — former
  • Japanese: 元 (moto-) — former
  • Kannada: ಮಾಜಿ (māji) — former
  • Khmer: អតីត (ʼaʼdət) — former
  • Korean: 전 (jeon) — former
  • Northern Kurdish: berê — former
  • Persian: اکس (eks-) — former
  • Polish: eks- — former
  • Portuguese: ex- — former
  • Russian: экс- (eks-) — former
  • Slovak: ex- — former
  • Spanish: ex- — former
  • Swedish: ex- — former
  • Tamil: மாஜி (māji) — former
  • Turkish: eski — former
  • Ukrainian: екс- (eks-) — former