ex-

See also: ex, Ex, ex., and -ex

English

Alternative forms

• e-

Etymology

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”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (hyphened always) /ɛks/
• IPA^(key): (unhyphened with primary or secondary stress) /ɛks/, (before a vowel) /ɛɡz/
• IPA^(key): (unhyphened unstressed) /ɪks/, (before a vowel) /ɪɡz/

Prefix

ex-

1. out of

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

2. outside

   ex-directory; borrowed from Latin: exterior

3. former, but still living (almost always used with a hyphen)

   ex-husband, ex-president, ex-wife

4. (biology) Lacking.

   excaudate, exstipulate

Usage notes

• Sometimes the x in ex- is elided before certain constants, being reduced to e- (as, e.g., in ejaculate and egregious which are borrowed from Latin).
• Words derived from ex- in the sense of former are usually formed with a hyphen. Using hyphen is recommended by GPO manual.

Synonyms

• (outside): out-, exo-, ecto-
• (former): then-
• (lacking): an-, -less, -free

Antonyms

• (outside): in-, intra-, en-/em-/im-, end-/endo-

Derived terms

• ex-directory
• exsert

 

English terms prefixed with ex-

Derived words without entries:

• ex-actor
• ex-athlete
• ex-Beatle
• ex-boss
• ex-CEO
• ex-CFO
• ex-Christian
• ex-colleague
• ex-consul
• ex-councillor
• ex-Czar
• ex-dictator
• ex-director
• ex-doctor
• ex-drummer
• ex-emperor
• ex-employee
• ex-fighter
• ex-fighter pilot
• ex-friend
• ex-governor
• ex-guitarist
• ex-Hindu
• ex-Jesuit
• ex-Jew
• ex-Jewish
• ex-judge
• ex-Kaiser
• ex-lover
• ex-manager
• ex-mayor
• ex-minister
• ex-Muslim
• ex-official
• ex-organ grinder
• ex-piano player
• ex-pilot
• ex-policeman
• ex-police officer
• ex-praetor
• ex-priest
• ex-programmer
• ex-scientist
• ex-Scientologist
• ex-senator
• ex-sergeant
• ex-soldier
• ex-statistician
• ex-student

Translations

former

• Catalan: ex- (ca)
• Czech: ex- (cs)
• Danish: eks-
• Dutch: ex- (nl)
• Esperanto: eks- (eo)
• Estonian: endine (et)
• Finnish: entinen (fi), ex- (fi) (informal)
• French: ex- (fr)
• German: ex- (de)
• Greek: πρώην (el) (próin)

  Ancient: γενόμενος (genómenos)

• Hungarian: ex- (hu)
• Ido: ex-
• Indonesian: eks-
• Japanese: 前 (ja) (zen-), 旧 (ja) (kyū-), 元 (ja) (moto-)
• Kannada: ಮಾಜಿ (kn) (māji)
• Khmer: អតីត (km) (ʼaʼdət)
• Korean: 전 (ko) (jeon)
• Persian: اکس‎ (eks-)
• Polish: eks- (pl)
• Portuguese: ex- (pt)
• Russian: экс- (eks-)
• Slovak: ex-
• Spanish: ex- (es)
• Swedish: ex- (sv)

See also

• e-
• ex
• extra-

Further reading

• ex- at OneLook Dictionary Search
• “ex-”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• “ex-”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016, →ISBN.
• “ex-”, in Collins English Dictionary.
• ex- in Britannica Dictionary
• John A. Simpson and Edmund S. C. Weiner, editors (1989), “ex-”, in The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edition, Oxford: Clarendon Press, →ISBN.
• John A. Simpson and Edmund S. C. Weiner, editors (1989), “ex-”, in The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edition, Oxford: Clarendon Press, →ISBN.

Anagrams

• XE, xe

Czech

Prefix

ex-

1. ex- (former)

Derived terms

Czech terms prefixed with ex-

Further reading

• ex- in Slovník afixů užívaných v češtině, 2017

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from French ex-, from Latin ex-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɛks/

Prefix

ex-

1. ex- (former, but still living)

Derived terms

• ex

Dutch terms prefixed with ex-

French

Prefix

ex-

1. ex- (former)

   ‎ex- + ‎femme → ‎ex-femme

Derived terms

French terms prefixed with ex-

Further reading

• “ex-”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

German

Prefix

ex-

1. ex- (former)
2. ex- (out)

Derived terms

German terms prefixed with ex-

Further reading

• “ex-” in Duden online

Hungarian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈɛks]

Prefix

ex-

1. ex- (former)

Derived terms

Hungarian nouns prefixed with ex-

Further reading

• ex- in Ittzés, Nóra (ed.). A magyar nyelv nagyszótára (‘A Comprehensive Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 2006–2031 (work in progress; published A–ez as of 2023)

Italian

Prefix

ex-

1. ex-

Latin

Alternative forms

• ē- (before b, d, g, j, l, m, n, r, or v)
• ec-, ef- (before f)

Etymology

The preposition ex, ē used in combination.

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /eks/, [ɛks̠]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /eks/, [eks]

Prefix

ex-

1. out, away

   ‎ē- + ‎veniō → ‎ēveniō

   ‎ex- + ‎clāmō (“call, shout”) → ‎exclāmō (“call out, exclaim”)

   ‎ex- + ‎eō (“go”) → ‎exeō (“exit, depart”)

2. throughout

   ‎ē- + ‎dormiō → ‎ēdormiō

   ‎ē- + ‎pōtō (“drink”) → ‎ēpōtō (“drink up”)

4. (intensive) thoroughly

   ‎ē- + ‎dūrus → ‎ēdūrō

   ‎ex- + ‎acuō → ‎exacuō

5. denoting achievement

   ‎ex- + ‎ōrō → ‎exōrō

   ‎ex- + ‎pugnō (“battle, fight, combat”) → ‎expugnō (“capture, conquer”)

6. up

   ‎ex- + ‎aggerō → ‎exaggerō

   ‎ex- + ‎struō (“pile, arrange”) → ‎exstruō (“heap up, build up, construct”)

7. denoting privation

   ‎ex- + ‎anima (“air, breath, soul, life”) → ‎exanimō (“deprive of air, deprive of life”)

   ‎ex- + ‎sanguis (“blood”) → ‎exsanguis (“deprived of blood, bloodless”)

Derived terms

Latin terms prefixed with ex-

Descendants

• French: é-
• Italian: s-, es-
• Old Occitan:
  • Occitan: es-
• Portuguese: es-, ex-
• Sicilian: s- (before consonant), sc- (before vowel)
• Spanish: es-

References

• “ex-” on pages 629–630 of the Oxford Latin Dictionary (1st ed., 1968–82)

Middle English

Alternative forms

• ef- (before f)

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Prefix

ex-

1. privation

   ‎ef- + ‎flouren → ‎efflouren

Derived terms

Middle English terms prefixed with ex-

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin ex.

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈe(j)s/, /ˈe(j)ʃ/
• Homophones: ex, -ês, Es (without /j/), eis (with /j/)

Prefix

ex-

1. ex- (former)

Usage notes

Always used with a hyphen.

Derived terms

• ex

Portuguese terms prefixed with ex-

Slovak

Prefix

ex-

1. ex- (former)

Derived terms

Slovak terms prefixed with ex-

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin ex.

Prefix

ex-

1. ex- (former)

Derived terms

Spanish terms prefixed with ex-

Further reading

• “ex-”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014

Swedish

Prefix

ex-

1. ex-, former, past

Derived terms

Swedish terms prefixed with ex-

Related terms

• ex

References

• ex- in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• ex- in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• ex- in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)