Brexit
Language: English
Part of speech: name
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈbɹɛɡzɪt/
ipa: /ˈbɹɛksɪt/
rhymes: -ɛksɪt
Forms: form: Brixit
Etymology: Blend of Britain + exit, formed by analogy with Grexit.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the earliest attested use is on 15 May 2012 in a Euractiv blog post by Peter Wilding titled “Stumbling towards the Brexit”, formed by analogy with Grexit, coined on 6 February 2012.
Senses: examples: text: Unless a clear view is pushed that Britain must lead in Europe at the very least to achieve the completion of the single market then the portmanteau for Greek euro exit might be followed by another sad word, Brexit.
ref: 2012 May 15, Peter Wilding, “Stumbling towards the Brexit”, in EurActiv, archived from the original on 24 Jun 2016:
text: The business community began to take the idea of Brexit seriously. Three major American banks, the Bank of America, Citibank and Morgan Stanley, revealed they were working on contingency plans to relocate from London to Dublin […]
ref: 2015, Denis MacShane, Brexit: How Britain Will Leave Europe, London: I.B. Tauris, →ISBN, page 6:
text: David Cameron has resigned as Prime Minister after Britain voted to leave the European Union. It followed a turbulent night with Remain campaigners quietly confident until the early hours when results from Newcastle and Sunderland showed better than expected returns for the Brexit camp. A surprise victory for a Brexit in Swansea, which was expected to vote to Remain, did little to dampen concerns despite Scotland overwhelmingly backing staying in the Union.
ref: 2016 June 24, Kate McCann, “EU referendum live: David Cameron resigns after UK shocks the world by voting for Brexit”, in The Daily Telegraph, archived from the original on 24 Jun 2016:
text: The pensions of British Eurocrats are shaping up to be one of the most politically poisonous points in the UK’s Brexit talks, as the EU and London prepare to clash over liabilities running to several billion euros.
ref: 2016 August 1, Alex Barker, Jim Brunsden, “Eurocrats’ pensions shape up to be flashpoint in Brexit talks”, in The Financial Times, London:
text: We must lift the uncertainty caused by Brexit.
ref: 2017 June 19, Michel Barnier, “Brexit Negotiations: David Davis says ‘Promising Start’ Made”, in BBC News:
text: [Donald] Tusk said: “Our agreement will not make trade between the UK and the EU frictionless or smoother. It will make it more complicated and costly than today, for all of us. This is the essence of Brexit.”
ref: 2018 March 7, Daniel Boffey, Jennifer Rankin, “EU scorns UK’s ‘pick and mix’ approach to trade post-Brexit”, in The Guardian, London:
text: Meanwhile, The Sunday Times revealed that civil servants had warned of a “Doomsday Brexit” if no agreement is reached, creating shortages of medicine, fuel and food.
ref: 2018 June 5, “Brexit poll reveals record number of voters think decision to leave EU is wrong”, in The Independent, London:
text: “It’s all incredibly unhelpful and what we need to do now is to get closer with our European partners and work out what a realistic, pragmatic Brexit is that works for both sides, the EU and ourselves.”
ref: 2018 June 23, “Brexit: Theresa May ‘not bluffing’ in threat to leave EU without a deal, Tory minister Liam Fox says”, in The Independent, London:
text: A further referendum is not just a way for voters to decide whether to incur the economic and social cost of a final Brexit deal.
ref: 2019 March 5, David Miliband, “As foreign secretary I argued against an EU referendum. Now I back one”, in The Guardian:
text: The EESC also considers that the €5.4 billion reserve will not be sufficient to mitigate the negative effects of Brexit and asks the co-legislators to increase the proposed ceiling.
ref: 2021 November, Christiaan van Lierop, European Parliamentary Research Service:
text: Brexit has also made it harder for the UK to deport migrants back to the EU as the country has left the bloc’s asylum scheme.
ref: 2021 December 2, “Frontex plane arrives in northern France to help fight people smuggling”, in Euronews, sourced from AFP:
text: Thanks to Brexit, many ferry companies now run direct from Ireland to the EU mainland, bypassing UK ports such as Fishguard, with an impact on traffic.
ref: 2022 November 16, Paul Bigland, “From rural branches to high-speed arteries”, in RAIL, number 970, page 52:
text: Even the BBC, long prevaricating on the issue, has started properly reporting the Brexit catastrophe, particularly its impact on the cost of living, NHS staff shortages and projections of weak future economic growth.
ref: 2023 February 2, Andrew Adonis, “Sooner or later, re-entry to the customs union and single market is inevitable”, in Prospect:
text: Biden’s irritation with London’s inability to solve its “Irish question” after Brexit has also played a role.
ref: 2023 August 7, Jo Harper, “UK–US: What’s happened to their free trade deal?”, in Deutsche Welle:
text: The mayor of London has urged EU citizens to “choose London” over other European cities, promising to make the UK capital a better place to live and work despite Brexit.
ref: 2023 October 6, Heather Stewart, “‘Choose London’: Sadiq Khan steps up efforts to lure EU citizens post-Brexit”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
text: The Brexit referendum seemingly heralded such a moment but other than the negative sentiment of leave, the more positive agenda of what to do with the UK’s newfound status has been found wanting.
ref: 2023 November 3, Tim Olivier, “Brexit: a critical juncture in the UK’s international relations?”, in UK in a Changing Europe:
text: The Brits have been uniquely incompetent in wallowing in narcissistic irrelevance ever since the Brexit vote. They’ve refused to admit that the only path forward for them is a crippling deal with the United States that will give them access to the NAFTA system but at the cost of any kind of economic sovereignty.
ref: 2023 November 23, Peter Zeihan, “Ireland Needs a New Game Plan || Peter Zeihan”, in Zeihan on Geopolitics, sourced from YouTube, 2:55–3:14:
text: Brussels has warned the UK that it must fully apply the existing Brexit deals on EU citizens and Northern Ireland before it will entertain a reset in the relationship with London.
ref: 2024 August 1, Lisa O'Carroll, “UK must apply existing Brexit deals before any reset in relations, says EU”, in The Guardian:
text: However, experts say it is increasingly clear that Brexit has played a significant role, exacerbating the post-2008 slump by hitting sectors with EU ties, and as the political turmoil led businesses to put investments on ice.
ref: 2025 October 31, Richard Partington, “‘The money machine is misfiring’: City blames Brexit for UK’s £20bn productivity headache”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
topics: government
politics
antonyms: Bremain
glosses: Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union.
Hyponyms: hard Brexit
soft Brexit
Coordinate terms: Bremain
Derived terms: sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: Brexiteer
sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: Brexiter
sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: Brexitish
sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: Brexitist
sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: Brexity
sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: Brexocalypse
sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: Brexodus
sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: Brexshit
sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: hard Brexit
sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: post-Brexit
sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: regrexit
sense: Terms derived from Brexit
word: soft Brexit
Related terms: sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Bayxit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Blaxit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Calexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Catalexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Czexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Dexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Fixit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Frexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Grexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Huxit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Italexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Lexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Megxit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Nexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Polexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Quexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: regrexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Roexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Scexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Swexit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Texit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Waxit
sense: Terms related to Brexit
word: Wexit