noun
General term for an axe or hatchet, used for chopping wood or as a tool/weapon.
彼は斧で薪を割った。
He split firewood with an axe.
その斧はとてもよく切れる。
That axe cuts very well.
A hatchet or billhook, often with a broader blade and used for cutting brush or small wood.
An adze, a woodworking tool with a blade set at a right angle to the handle, used for shaping wood.
The origin is uncertain, but the word is native Japanese. The kanji 斧 is a pictograph of an axe.