ace

1 of 7

noun (1)

1
a
: a die face marked with one spot
b
: a playing card marked in its center with one pip
c
: a domino end marked with one spot
2
: a very small amount or degree : particle
3
: a point scored especially on a service (as in tennis or handball) that an opponent fails to touch
4
: a golf score of one stroke on a hole
also : a hole made in one stroke
5
: a combat pilot who has brought down at least five enemy airplanes
6
a
: a person who excels at something
a computer ace
b
: the best pitcher on a baseball team
the ace of the staff

ace

2 of 7

verb

aced; acing

transitive verb

1
: to score an ace against (an opponent)
2
: to make (a hole in golf) in one stroke
3
: to gain a decisive advantage over : defeat
usually used with out
4
a
: to earn a high grade on (something, such as an examination)
especially : to get an A on
b
: to perform extremely well in
he aced every subject

ace

3 of 7

adjective (1)

: of first or high rank or quality
an ace mechanic

ace

4 of 7

noun (2)

plural aces
: an asexual person (see asexual sense 3b)
Like many other aces and aros, I grew up thinking I was broken. I was 19 before I heard the words "asexual" or "aromantic," before I found out that there were other people in the world like me.Mikayla Micomonaco

ace

5 of 7

adjective (2)

: asexual
But ace individuals often still feel romantic attraction toward others, as well as a drive to cultivate intimate, loving relationships—just without an intrinsic interest in pursuing the sexual aspect.Taryn Deoilers

Ace

6 of 7

trademark

used for a bandage with elastic properties

ACE

7 of 7

abbreviation

1
American Council on Education
2
ˌā-(ˌ)sē-ˈē How to pronounce ACE (audio)
ˈās-
angiotensin converting enzyme
The ACE inhibitors are designer molecules developed specifically to attach to their target enzyme and prevent it from activating angiotensin. Virtually the only thing these drugs do in the body is to interact with ACE. However, ACE is not a very specific enzyme; it acts on hormones besides angiotensin.Harvard Medical Health Letter
Phrases
ace in the hole
1
: an ace dealt face down to a player (as in stud poker) and not exposed until the showdown
2
: an effective and decisive argument or resource held in reserve
within an ace of
: on the point of : very near to
came within an ace of winning

Examples of ace in a Sentence

Noun (1) She won the match by scoring more than 30 aces. took a few lessons with a tennis ace to improve his backhand Verb She aced her entrance exams. He aced his annual physical. He aced his opponent on the last point of the match.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The country-pop duo blew its chance to nab ace country crooner Rob Cole during the fourth round of blind auditions Tuesday. USA TODAY, 6 Mar. 2024 Garrett’s importance to Marlins rotation The Marlins are counting on Garrett to be one of their workhorses in the rotation this season, especially with ace Sandy Alcantara sidelined for the season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 5 Mar. 2024 Add another 22 years to 2016 and the game's richest deal for that year belonged to Los Angeles Dodgers' ace Clayton Kershaw at $32 million – an increase of another 407.9%. Chuck Murr, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 Sierra Canyon did a good job scoring two runs off ace Thomas Bridges in three innings. Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2024 You could be forgiven for thinking all aces are equal — worth four points apiece. Frank Stewart, The Mercury News, 28 Feb. 2024 There would inevitably be questions about whether Red Bull’s ace car designer Adrian Newey and triple world champion Verstappen remain committed or eye the exits. Sahil Kapur, NBC News, 25 Feb. 2024 For him, the nightmare is different: An ace driver is now her exasperated driving instructor. Wesley Morris, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2024 Relying on his ace piloting skills, Armstrong manually navigated to a safe landing site, with only 30 seconds of fuel left. Ashley Strickland, CNN, 17 Feb. 2024
Verb
Starting next January, any automaker that wants their motor vehicles to ace the group’s safety test will need to add more physical buttons and de-emphasize touch-sensitive controls. Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 6 Mar. 2024 The Dolphins are releasing cornerback and special teams ace Keion Crossen, a league source told the Miami Herald, in a move that will save them about $3 million in cap space. Daniel Oyefusi, Miami Herald, 5 Mar. 2024 Trump has repeatedly claimed to have aced cognitive tests, including one taken at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, but never formally released the results. Sara Dorn, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 She’s taken 18 college-level classes and aced them with a cumulative 4.5 GPA while taking on leadership roles in her school’s robotics and math clubs. Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, 12 Feb. 2024 Trump boasts about acing the Montreal Cognitive Assessment during that 2017 exam. Lawrence K. Altman, STAT, 16 Feb. 2024 Considering a student acing a class all semester and then badly failing a final exam. Clarence E. Hill Jr., Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 26 Jan. 2024 No players remain on the Jets from that roster, while only three Patriots players are still in New England: center David Andrews, special teams ace Matthew Slater and long snapper Joe Cardona. Dennis Waszak Jr., USA TODAY, 1 Jan. 2024 Great for wedding registries ZWILLING J.A. Henckels Forte Plus Nonstick Fry Pan $120 at Williams Sonoma Zwilling’s Forte Plus aced several tests and came in just points behind its sleeker sibling, the Madura Plus, and its cousin, the Demeyere Alu Pro 5. Christa Glennie, wsj.com, 26 Dec. 2023
Adjective
Joining him were a band of equally ace musicians with Windy City roots, including guitarist Isaiah Sharkey, bassist Junius Paul, keyboardist Andrew Toombs, and drummer Brandon Collins. Rolling Stone, 10 Aug. 2023 And that number doesn’t include C.J. Goodwin who is a special teams ace, but plays corner in a pinch. David Moore, Dallas News, 5 June 2023 In its pairing of ace British actors — Mark Rylance and Sally Hawkins — and in its strange-but-true tale of working-class Brits breaking the rules, Phantom recalls The Duke (also a Sony Pictures Classics release), although that recent Jim Broadbent–Helen Mirren starrer has a heavier undercurrent. Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 June 2022 The case for: Giants fans delighted in Rodón’s historic strikeout rate and would have loved to see the lefty, along with co-ace Logan Webb, pitch in a playoff series. John Shea, San Francisco Chronicle, 29 Nov. 2022 An ace American skier who faltered and went home empty-handed. Ted Anthony, ajc, 21 Feb. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ace.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English as, borrowed from Anglo-French, going back to Latin ass-, ās "copper money piece (at first a pound, but progressively reduced to a half-ounce), pound unit of weight, unit," of uncertain origin

Note: The word ās has been compared within Latin to asser "wooden beam, pole, post" (generalized from a plural asserēs, from a singular *assis?) and assis, axis (by hypercorrection?) "plank, board," though any relationship is far from certain. A loanword from Etruscan?

Verb

derivative of ace entry 1

Adjective (1)

derivative of ace entry 1

Noun (2)

short for asexual, with spelling copying ace entry 1

Adjective (2)

from attributive use of ace entry 4

First Known Use

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1923, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective (1)

1926, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

2008, in the meaning defined above

Adjective (2)

2009, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ace was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near ace

Cite this Entry

“Ace.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ace. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

ace

1 of 3 noun
1
: a playing card with one large figure in its center
2
: a very small amount or degree
within an ace of winning
3
: a point scored on a serve (as in tennis) that an opponent fails to touch
4
: a golf hole made in one stroke
5
a
: a combat pilot who has shot down at least five enemy airplanes
b
: a person who is expert at something

ace

2 of 3 verb
aced; acing
1
: to score an ace against
the tennis player aced her opponent
2
: to earn the grade of A on (an examination)

ace

3 of 3 adjective
: of first or high rank or quality

Medical Definition

Ace

1 of 2 trademark
used for a bandage with elastic properties

ACE

2 of 2 abbreviation

More from Merriam-Webster on ace

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