"get the axe"

Posted by ESC on November 15, 2000

In Reply to: "Get the axe" posted by Natalia on November 15, 2000

: I know "get the axe" means to be fired or eliminated from employment, but who knows the derivation of this phrase?

I couldn't find this phrase in my reference books. But it seems obvious to me that it refers to a tree being cut down. A tree is "felled." An employee is fired.