except

/ɛkˈsɛpt/

/ɛkˈsɛpt/

Other forms: excepting; excepted; excepts

The preposition except means "excluding." When we refer to the continental United States, we mean the whole country except Alaska and Hawaii.

This word can also be used as a conjunction meaning "but": If you're not very hungry, you might not eat anything, except a few crackers. As a verb, except is often used in the past tense: All drivers must obey the speed limit, but ambulances rushing to the hospital are excepted. Much more rare is the use of except as a verb meaning "to object," which we find mostly in legal contexts.

Definitions of except

1. verb

   prevent from being included or considered or accepted
   synonyms: exclude, leave off, leave out, omit, take out

   types:

   elide

   leave or strike out

   drop

   omit (a letter or syllable) in speaking or writing

   type of:

   do away with, eliminate, extinguish, get rid of

   terminate, end, or take out
2. verb

   take exception to
   synonyms: demur

   type of:

   object

   express or raise an objection or protest or criticism or express dissent
3. preposition

   excluding