How to say "axe" in Japanese

• 斧おのCommon
  nounThe common, general word for the chopping tool: an axe, and by its gloss a hatchet too. When you simply mean 'axe', this is the default choice.
  彼かれはおのでその木きを切り倒きりたおした。↗

  He cut down the tree with an ax.
• アックス
  nounThe borrowed English word for 'axe' in katakana. Less common than the native word, it is readily understood but seldom the first choice for the tool itself.
• 斧鉞ふえつ
  nounA formal, literary two-character word for 'axe'. Much less common than 斧, it is at home in written, elevated prose and is seldom the word you want in speech.
• 薪割りまきわり
  nounLiterally 'splitting firewood', this names the chore and, by extension, the hatchet or small axe used for it. It is not a general word for axes — for the tool itself, 斧 is the word.

For an axe in general use 斧; 「アックス」 is the less common loanword; 斧鉞 is a formal literary word seldom needed; 「薪割り」 means splitting firewood and the hatchet used for it.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• 斧おのaxe
• アックスaxe
• 斧鉞ふえつaxe
• 薪割りまきわりhatchet