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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

XXX.

Denotes extreme or hardcore pornography.

3 characters1 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

symbol/ˌʔɛks.ʔɛksˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ˈtɹɪpəlˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ɛ.ksɛ.ksɛks/General-American/ˈtɹɪpəlˈɛks/General-American
  1. Denotes extreme or hardcore pornography.

Where this word comes from

1969 (see quotations). Reduplication of X (“an age rating denoting content suitable for adults”), in reference to the X rating introduced by the Motion Picture Association of America on 1 November 1968 for films containing extreme violence, heavily implied (originally softcore) sex and obscene language. Film posters began to include multiple exes (but skipping two) in order to imply even more extreme, hardcore content, particularly in relation to pornography (although many actually contained the same content as X-rated films). Compare XXXX. The original X rating was superseded by NC-17 in 1990; see also R-18.

adj/ˌʔɛks.ʔɛksˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ˈtɹɪpəlˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ɛ.ksɛ.ksɛks/General-American/ˈtɹɪpəlˈɛks/General-American
  1. Extreme or hardcore pornography; or, less strictly, any pornographic content.

Where this word comes from

1969 (see quotations). Reduplication of X (“an age rating denoting content suitable for adults”), in reference to the X rating introduced by the Motion Picture Association of America on 1 November 1968 for films containing extreme violence, heavily implied (originally softcore) sex and obscene language. Film posters began to include multiple exes (but skipping two) in order to imply even more extreme, hardcore content, particularly in relation to pornography (although many actually contained the same content as X-rated films). Compare XXXX. The original X rating was superseded by NC-17 in 1990; see also R-18.

symbol/ˌʔɛks.ʔɛksˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ˈtɹɪpəlˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ɛ.ksɛ.ksɛks/General-American/ˈtɹɪpəlˈɛks/General-American
  1. Extra strong alcohol, particularly ale or (later) any beer.

    obsolete
  2. Extra strong alcohol, particularly ale or (later) any beer. Alcohol.

    obsolete
Where this word comes from

Unknown. Possibly from X, a graphic derivative of the skull and crossbones (“indicator of death”). For other possible explanations, see Beer measurement § Saltire marks on WikipediaWikipedia .

adj/ˌʔɛks.ʔɛksˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ˈtɹɪpəlˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ɛ.ksɛ.ksɛks/General-American/ˈtɹɪpəlˈɛks/General-American
  1. Extra strong; very high quality.

Where this word comes from

Unknown. Possibly from X, a graphic derivative of the skull and crossbones (“indicator of death”). For other possible explanations, see Beer measurement § Saltire marks on WikipediaWikipedia .

verb/ˌʔɛks.ʔɛksˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ˈtɹɪpəlˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ɛ.ksɛ.ksɛks/General-American/ˈtɹɪpəlˈɛks/General-American
  1. To delete; to cross out, especially to conceal or suggest vulgar language.

    transitive · uncommon
Where this word comes from

Unknown, but compare ex (“to delete; to cross out”, verb).

symbol/ˌʔɛks.ʔɛksˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ˈtɹɪpəlˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ɛ.ksɛ.ksɛks/General-American/ˈtɹɪpəlˈɛks/General-American
  1. Straight edge (lifestyle and subculture).

Where this word comes from

Perhaps from sXe.

noun/ˌʔɛks.ʔɛksˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ˈtɹɪpəlˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ɛ.ksɛ.ksɛks/General-American/ˈtɹɪpəlˈɛks/General-American
  1. Triple X syndrome.

    rare · uncountable
Where this word comes from

From having three X chromosomes (and no Y), or as a clipping of XXX syndrome.

noun/ˌʔɛks.ʔɛksˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ˈtɹɪpəlˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ɛ.ksɛ.ksɛks/General-American/ˈtɹɪpəlˈɛks/General-American
  1. The conventional Morse code call made when in an urgent situation but not in immediate distress.

    obsolete
Where this word comes from

Adopted by the International Radiotelegraph Convention in 1927.

adj/ˌʔɛks.ʔɛksˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ˈtɹɪpəlˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ɛ.ksɛ.ksɛks/General-American/ˈtɹɪpəlˈɛks/General-American
  1. Unknown eye or hair color.

    not-comparable
  2. Bald.

    not-comparable
noun/ˌʔɛks.ʔɛksˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ˈtɹɪpəlˈʔɛks/Received-Pronunciation/ɛ.ksɛ.ksɛks/General-American/ˈtɹɪpəlˈɛks/General-American
  1. Alternative form of xxx (“an abbreviation for kisses”).

    alt-of · alternative · rare
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.