diff --git a/wp-admin/comment.php b/wp-admin/comment.php
index 3c54321dc9..1f1553f493 100644
--- a/wp-admin/comment.php
+++ b/wp-admin/comment.php
@@ -159,7 +159,7 @@ if ( $comment->comment_approved != '0' ) { // if not unapproved
 </tr>
 <?php } ?>
 <tr>
-<th scope="row" valign="top"><?php /* translators: field name in comment form */ echo _x('Comment', 'noun'); ?></th>
+<th scope="row" valign="top"><?php /* translators: field name in comment form */ _ex('Comment', 'noun'); ?></th>
 <td><?php echo $comment->comment_content; ?></td>
 </tr>
 </table>
diff --git a/wp-admin/edit-comments.php b/wp-admin/edit-comments.php
index 84203c1c39..31c31eab69 100644
--- a/wp-admin/edit-comments.php
+++ b/wp-admin/edit-comments.php
@@ -316,12 +316,12 @@ $page_links = paginate_links( array(
 <option value="approve"><?php _e('Approve'); ?></option>
 <?php endif; ?>
 <?php if ( 'all' == $comment_status || 'approved' == $comment_status || 'moderated' == $comment_status ): ?>
-<option value="spam"><?php echo _x('Mark as Spam', 'comment'); ?></option>
+<option value="spam"><?php _ex('Mark as Spam', 'comment'); ?></option>
 <?php endif; ?>
 <?php if ( 'trash' == $comment_status ): ?>
 <option value="untrash"><?php _e('Restore'); ?></option>
 <?php elseif ( 'spam' == $comment_status ): ?>
-<option value="unspam"><?php echo _x('Not Spam', 'comment'); ?></option>
+<option value="unspam"><?php _ex('Not Spam', 'comment'); ?></option>
 <?php endif; ?>
 <?php if ( 'trash' == $comment_status || 'spam' == $comment_status || !EMPTY_TRASH_DAYS ): ?>
 <option value="delete"><?php _e('Delete Permanently'); ?></option>
@@ -416,7 +416,7 @@ if ( $page_links )
 <option value="approve"><?php _e('Approve'); ?></option>
 <?php endif; ?>
 <?php if ( 'all' == $comment_status || 'approved' == $comment_status || 'moderated' == $comment_status ): ?>
-<option value="spam"><?php echo _x('Mark as Spam', 'comment'); ?></option>
+<option value="spam"><?php _ex('Mark as Spam', 'comment'); ?></option>
 <?php endif; ?>
 <?php if ( 'trash' == $comment_status ): ?>
 <option value="untrash"><?php _e('Restore'); ?></option>
@@ -424,7 +424,7 @@ if ( $page_links )
 <?php if ( 'trash' == $comment_status || 'spam' == $comment_status || !EMPTY_TRASH_DAYS ): ?>
 <option value="delete"><?php _e('Delete Permanently'); ?></option>
 <?php elseif ( 'spam' == $comment_status ): ?>
-<option value="unspam"><?php echo _x('Not Spam', 'comment'); ?></option>
+<option value="unspam"><?php _ex('Not Spam', 'comment'); ?></option>
 <?php else: ?>
 <option value="trash"><?php _e('Move to Trash'); ?></option>
 <?php endif; ?>
diff --git a/wp-admin/edit-form-comment.php b/wp-admin/edit-form-comment.php
index d701ac2ad2..42f3e9d846 100644
--- a/wp-admin/edit-form-comment.php
+++ b/wp-admin/edit-form-comment.php
@@ -47,9 +47,9 @@ $comment->comment_author_email = esc_attr($comment->comment_author_email);
 <div id="misc-publishing-actions">
 
 <div class="misc-pub-section" id="comment-status-radio">
-<label class="approved"><input type="radio"<?php checked( $comment->comment_approved, '1' ); ?> name="comment_status" value="1" /><?php /* translators: comment type radio button */ echo _x('Approved', 'adjective') ?></label><br />
-<label class="waiting"><input type="radio"<?php checked( $comment->comment_approved, '0' ); ?> name="comment_status" value="0" /><?php /* translators: comment type radio button */ echo _x('Pending', 'adjective') ?></label><br />
-<label class="spam"><input type="radio"<?php checked( $comment->comment_approved, 'spam' ); ?> name="comment_status" value="spam" /><?php /* translators: comment type radio button */ echo _x('Spam', 'adjective'); ?></label>
+<label class="approved"><input type="radio"<?php checked( $comment->comment_approved, '1' ); ?> name="comment_status" value="1" /><?php /* translators: comment type radio button */ _ex('Approved', 'adjective') ?></label><br />
+<label class="waiting"><input type="radio"<?php checked( $comment->comment_approved, '0' ); ?> name="comment_status" value="0" /><?php /* translators: comment type radio button */ _ex('Pending', 'adjective') ?></label><br />
+<label class="spam"><input type="radio"<?php checked( $comment->comment_approved, 'spam' ); ?> name="comment_status" value="spam" /><?php /* translators: comment type radio button */ _ex('Spam', 'adjective'); ?></label>
 </div>
 
 <div class="misc-pub-section curtime misc-pub-section-last">
diff --git a/wp-admin/edit-tag-form.php b/wp-admin/edit-tag-form.php
index b250a81a54..56674de00d 100644
--- a/wp-admin/edit-tag-form.php
+++ b/wp-admin/edit-tag-form.php
@@ -33,20 +33,20 @@ do_action($taxonomy . '_pre_edit_form', $tag, $taxonomy);  ?>
 <?php wp_original_referer_field(true, 'previous'); wp_nonce_field('update-tag_' . $tag_ID); ?>
 	<table class="form-table">
 		<tr class="form-field form-required">
-			<th scope="row" valign="top"><label for="name"><?php echo _x('Name', 'Taxonomy Name'); ?></label></th>
+			<th scope="row" valign="top"><label for="name"><?php _ex('Name', 'Taxonomy Name'); ?></label></th>
 			<td><input name="name" id="name" type="text" value="<?php if ( isset( $tag->name ) ) echo esc_attr($tag->name); ?>" size="40" aria-required="true" />
 			<p class="description"><?php _e('The name is how it appears on your site.'); ?></p></td>
 		</tr>
 <?php if ( !global_terms_enabled() ) { ?>
 		<tr class="form-field">
-			<th scope="row" valign="top"><label for="slug"><?php echo _x('Slug', 'Taxonomy Slug'); ?></label></th>
+			<th scope="row" valign="top"><label for="slug"><?php _ex('Slug', 'Taxonomy Slug'); ?></label></th>
 			<td><input name="slug" id="slug" type="text" value="<?php if ( isset( $tag->slug ) ) echo esc_attr(apply_filters('editable_slug', $tag->slug)); ?>" size="40" />
 			<p class="description"><?php _e('The &#8220;slug&#8221; is the URL-friendly version of the name. It is usually all lowercase and contains only letters, numbers, and hyphens.'); ?></p></td>
 		</tr>
 <?php } ?>
 <?php if ( is_taxonomy_hierarchical($taxonomy) ) : ?>
 		<tr class="form-field">
-			<th scope="row" valign="top"><label for="parent"><?php echo _x('Parent', 'Taxonomy Parent'); ?></label></th>
+			<th scope="row" valign="top"><label for="parent"><?php _ex('Parent', 'Taxonomy Parent'); ?></label></th>
 			<td>
 				<?php wp_dropdown_categories(array('hide_empty' => 0, 'hide_if_empty' => false, 'name' => 'parent', 'orderby' => 'name', 'taxonomy' => $taxonomy, 'selected' => $tag->parent, 'exclude' => $tag->term_id, 'hierarchical' => true, 'show_option_none' => __('None'))); ?><br />
 				<?php if ( 'category' == $taxonomy ) : ?>
@@ -56,7 +56,7 @@ do_action($taxonomy . '_pre_edit_form', $tag, $taxonomy);  ?>
 		</tr>
 <?php endif; // is_taxonomy_hierarchical() ?>
 		<tr class="form-field">
-			<th scope="row" valign="top"><label for="description"><?php echo _x('Description', 'Taxonomy Description'); ?></label></th>
+			<th scope="row" valign="top"><label for="description"><?php _ex('Description', 'Taxonomy Description'); ?></label></th>
 			<td><textarea name="description" id="description" rows="5" cols="50" style="width: 97%;"><?php echo esc_html($tag->description); ?></textarea><br />
 			<span class="description"><?php _e('The description is not prominent by default, however some themes may show it.'); ?></span></td>
 		</tr>
diff --git a/wp-admin/edit-tags.php b/wp-admin/edit-tags.php
index fc9b8cfdeb..510244f6a8 100644
--- a/wp-admin/edit-tags.php
+++ b/wp-admin/edit-tags.php
@@ -348,20 +348,20 @@ if ( current_user_can($tax->cap->edit_terms) ) {
 <?php wp_nonce_field('add-tag'); ?>
 
 <div class="form-field form-required">
-	<label for="tag-name"><?php echo _x('Name', 'Taxonomy Name'); ?></label>
+	<label for="tag-name"><?php _ex('Name', 'Taxonomy Name'); ?></label>
 	<input name="tag-name" id="tag-name" type="text" value="" size="40" aria-required="true" />
 	<p><?php _e('The name is how it appears on your site.'); ?></p>
 </div>
 <?php if ( ! global_terms_enabled() ) : ?>
 <div class="form-field">
-	<label for="tag-slug"><?php echo _x('Slug', 'Taxonomy Slug'); ?></label>
+	<label for="tag-slug"><?php _ex('Slug', 'Taxonomy Slug'); ?></label>
 	<input name="slug" id="tag-slug" type="text" value="" size="40" />
 	<p><?php _e('The &#8220;slug&#8221; is the URL-friendly version of the name. It is usually all lowercase and contains only letters, numbers, and hyphens.'); ?></p>
 </div>
 <?php endif; // is_multisite() ?>
 <?php if ( is_taxonomy_hierarchical($taxonomy) ) : ?>
 <div class="form-field">
-	<label for="parent"><?php echo _x('Parent', 'Taxonomy Parent'); ?></label>
+	<label for="parent"><?php _ex('Parent', 'Taxonomy Parent'); ?></label>
 	<?php wp_dropdown_categories(array('hide_empty' => 0, 'hide_if_empty' => false, 'taxonomy' => $taxonomy, 'name' => 'parent', 'orderby' => 'name', 'hierarchical' => true, 'show_option_none' => __('None'))); ?>
 	<?php if ( 'category' == $taxonomy ) : // @todo: Generic text for hierarchical taxonomies ?>
 		<p><?php _e('Categories, unlike tags, can have a hierarchy. You might have a Jazz category, and under that have children categories for Bebop and Big Band. Totally optional.'); ?></p>
@@ -369,7 +369,7 @@ if ( current_user_can($tax->cap->edit_terms) ) {
 </div>
 <?php endif; // is_taxonomy_hierarchical() ?>
 <div class="form-field">
-	<label for="tag-description"><?php echo _x('Description', 'Taxonomy Description'); ?></label>
+	<label for="tag-description"><?php _ex('Description', 'Taxonomy Description'); ?></label>
 	<textarea name="description" id="tag-description" rows="5" cols="40"></textarea>
 	<p><?php _e('The description is not prominent by default; however, some themes may show it.'); ?></p>
 </div>
diff --git a/wp-admin/includes/media.php b/wp-admin/includes/media.php
index ee3d09990b..6f8c0ace56 100644
--- a/wp-admin/includes/media.php
+++ b/wp-admin/includes/media.php
@@ -1719,7 +1719,7 @@ jQuery(function($){
 <?php _e('Sort Order:'); ?>
 <a href="#" id="asc"><?php _e('Ascending'); ?></a> |
 <a href="#" id="desc"><?php _e('Descending'); ?></a> |
-<a href="#" id="clear"><?php echo _x('Clear', 'verb'); ?></a>
+<a href="#" id="clear"><?php _ex('Clear', 'verb'); ?></a>
 </div>
 <form enctype="multipart/form-data" method="post" action="<?php echo esc_attr($form_action_url); ?>" class="media-upload-form validate" id="gallery-form">
 <?php wp_nonce_field('media-form'); ?>
diff --git a/wp-admin/includes/plugin-install.php b/wp-admin/includes/plugin-install.php
index 821db020d1..39c7f7400d 100644
--- a/wp-admin/includes/plugin-install.php
+++ b/wp-admin/includes/plugin-install.php
@@ -169,7 +169,7 @@ function install_search_form(){
 		<select name="type" id="typeselector">
 			<option value="term"<?php selected('term', $type) ?>><?php _e('Term'); ?></option>
 			<option value="author"<?php selected('author', $type) ?>><?php _e('Author'); ?></option>
-			<option value="tag"<?php selected('tag', $type) ?>><?php echo _x('Tag', 'Plugin Installer'); ?></option>
+			<option value="tag"<?php selected('tag', $type) ?>><?php _ex('Tag', 'Plugin Installer'); ?></option>
 		</select>
 		<input type="text" name="s" value="<?php echo esc_attr($term) ?>" />
 		<label class="screen-reader-text" for="plugin-search-input"><?php _e('Search Plugins'); ?></label>
diff --git a/wp-admin/includes/template.php b/wp-admin/includes/template.php
index aeb2ef8039..f2cdbf37e6 100644
--- a/wp-admin/includes/template.php
+++ b/wp-admin/includes/template.php
@@ -3602,7 +3602,7 @@ function screen_meta($screen) {
 <div id="screen-options-wrap" class="hidden">
 	<form id="adv-settings" action="" method="post">
 	<?php if ( isset($wp_meta_boxes[$screen->id]) ) : ?>
-		<h5><?php echo _x('Show on screen', 'Metaboxes') ?></h5>
+		<h5><?php _ex('Show on screen', 'Metaboxes') ?></h5>
 		<div class="metabox-prefs">
 			<?php meta_box_prefs($screen); ?>
 			<br class="clear" />
diff --git a/wp-admin/includes/theme-install.php b/wp-admin/includes/theme-install.php
index f7256061b1..f5e806ef30 100644
--- a/wp-admin/includes/theme-install.php
+++ b/wp-admin/includes/theme-install.php
@@ -156,7 +156,7 @@ function install_theme_search_form() {
 	<select	name="type" id="typeselector">
 	<option value="term" <?php selected('term', $type) ?>><?php _e('Term'); ?></option>
 	<option value="author" <?php selected('author', $type) ?>><?php _e('Author'); ?></option>
-	<option value="tag" <?php selected('tag', $type) ?>><?php echo _x('Tag', 'Theme Installer'); ?></option>
+	<option value="tag" <?php selected('tag', $type) ?>><?php _ex('Tag', 'Theme Installer'); ?></option>
 	</select>
 	<input type="text" name="s" size="30" value="<?php echo esc_attr($term) ?>" />
 	<input type="submit" name="search" value="<?php esc_attr_e('Search'); ?>" class="button" />
diff --git a/wp-admin/ms-sites.php b/wp-admin/ms-sites.php
index af806a890e..4a16c5fc6d 100644
--- a/wp-admin/ms-sites.php
+++ b/wp-admin/ms-sites.php
@@ -113,7 +113,7 @@ switch ( $action ) {
 							<?php } ?>
 						</tr>
 						<tr class="form-field">
-							<th scope="row"><?php echo _x( 'Registered', 'site' ) ?></th>
+							<th scope="row"><?php _ex( 'Registered', 'site' ) ?></th>
 							<td><input name="blog[registered]" type="text" id="blog_registered" value="<?php echo esc_attr( $details->registered ) ?>" size="40" /></td>
 						</tr>
 						<tr class="form-field">
@@ -414,8 +414,8 @@ switch ( $action ) {
 			<select name="action">
 				<option value="-1" selected="selected"><?php _e( 'Bulk Actions' ); ?></option>
 				<option value="delete"><?php _e( 'Delete' ); ?></option>
-				<option value="spam"><?php echo _x( 'Mark as Spam', 'site' ); ?></option>
-				<option value="notspam"><?php echo _x( 'Not Spam', 'site' ); ?></option>
+				<option value="spam"><?php _ex( 'Mark as Spam', 'site' ); ?></option>
+				<option value="notspam"><?php _ex( 'Not Spam', 'site' ); ?></option>
 			</select>
 			<input type="submit" value="<?php esc_attr_e( 'Apply' ); ?>" name="doaction" id="doaction" class="button-secondary action" />
 			<?php wp_nonce_field( 'bulk-ms-sites' ); ?>
@@ -665,8 +665,8 @@ switch ( $action ) {
 			<select name="action2">
 				<option value="-1" selected="selected"><?php _e( 'Bulk Actions' ); ?></option>
 				<option value="delete"><?php _e( 'Delete' ); ?></option>
-				<option value="spam"><?php echo _x( 'Mark as Spam', 'site' ); ?></option>
-				<option value="notspam"><?php echo _x( 'Not Spam', 'site' ); ?></option>
+				<option value="spam"><?php _ex( 'Mark as Spam', 'site' ); ?></option>
+				<option value="notspam"><?php _ex( 'Not Spam', 'site' ); ?></option>
 			</select>
 			<input type="submit" value="<?php esc_attr_e( 'Apply' ); ?>" name="doaction2" id="doaction2" class="button-secondary action" />
 			</div>
diff --git a/wp-admin/ms-users.php b/wp-admin/ms-users.php
index 0ab450e3d9..f422466f76 100644
--- a/wp-admin/ms-users.php
+++ b/wp-admin/ms-users.php
@@ -130,8 +130,8 @@ if ( isset( $_GET['updated'] ) && $_GET['updated'] == 'true' && ! empty( $_GET['
 				<select name="action">
 					<option value="-1" selected="selected"><?php _e( 'Bulk Actions' ); ?></option>
 					<option value="delete"><?php _e( 'Delete' ); ?></option>
-					<option value="spam"><?php echo _x( 'Mark as Spam', 'user' ); ?></option>
-					<option value="notspam"><?php echo _x( 'Not Spam', 'user' ); ?></option>
+					<option value="spam"><?php _ex( 'Mark as Spam', 'user' ); ?></option>
+					<option value="notspam"><?php _ex( 'Not Spam', 'user' ); ?></option>
 				</select>
 				<input type="submit" value="<?php esc_attr_e( 'Apply' ); ?>" name="doaction" id="doaction" class="button-secondary action" />
 				<?php wp_nonce_field( 'bulk-ms-users' ); ?>
@@ -324,8 +324,8 @@ if ( isset( $_GET['updated'] ) && $_GET['updated'] == 'true' && ! empty( $_GET['
 				<select name="action2">
 					<option value="-1" selected="selected"><?php _e( 'Bulk Actions' ); ?></option>
 					<option value="delete"><?php _e( 'Delete' ); ?></option>
-					<option value="spam"><?php echo _x( 'Mark as Spam', 'user' ); ?></option>
-					<option value="notspam"><?php echo _x( 'Not Spam', 'user' ); ?></option>
+					<option value="spam"><?php _ex( 'Mark as Spam', 'user' ); ?></option>
+					<option value="notspam"><?php _ex( 'Not Spam', 'user' ); ?></option>
 				</select>
 				<input type="submit" value="<?php esc_attr_e( 'Apply' ); ?>" name="doaction2" id="doaction2" class="button-secondary action" />
 			</div>
diff --git a/wp-admin/theme-editor.php b/wp-admin/theme-editor.php
index 6400ff4d93..1657e3dacd 100644
--- a/wp-admin/theme-editor.php
+++ b/wp-admin/theme-editor.php
@@ -172,7 +172,7 @@ if ($allowed_files) :
 		<li><a href="theme-editor.php?file=<?php echo "$template_file"; ?>&amp;theme=<?php echo urlencode($theme) ?>&amp;dir=theme"><?php echo $filedesc ?></a></li>
 <?php endwhile; ?>
 	</ul>
-	<h3><?php /* translators: Theme stylesheets in theme editor */ echo _x('Styles', 'Theme stylesheets in theme editor'); ?></h3>
+	<h3><?php /* translators: Theme stylesheets in theme editor */ _ex('Styles', 'Theme stylesheets in theme editor'); ?></h3>
 	<ul>
 <?php
 	$template_mapping = array();
diff --git a/wp-admin/upload.php b/wp-admin/upload.php
index ce937e4fab..43f01e0dd8 100644
--- a/wp-admin/upload.php
+++ b/wp-admin/upload.php
@@ -363,9 +363,9 @@ if ( isset($_GET['detached']) ) { ?>
 <tr>
 	<th scope="col" class="check-column"><input type="checkbox" /></th>
 	<th scope="col"></th>
-	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ echo _x('Media', 'media column name'); ?></th>
-	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ echo _x('Author', 'media column name'); ?></th>
-	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ echo _x('Date Added', 'media column name'); ?></th>
+	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ _ex('Media', 'media column name'); ?></th>
+	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ _ex('Author', 'media column name'); ?></th>
+	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ _ex('Date Added', 'media column name'); ?></th>
 </tr>
 </thead>
 
@@ -373,9 +373,9 @@ if ( isset($_GET['detached']) ) { ?>
 <tr>
 	<th scope="col" class="check-column"><input type="checkbox" /></th>
 	<th scope="col"></th>
-	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ echo _x('Media', 'media column name'); ?></th>
-	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ echo _x('Author', 'media column name'); ?></th>
-	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ echo _x('Date Added', 'media column name'); ?></th>
+	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ _ex('Media', 'media column name'); ?></th>
+	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ _ex('Author', 'media column name'); ?></th>
+	<th scope="col"><?php /* translators: column name in media */ _ex('Date Added', 'media column name'); ?></th>
 </tr>
 </tfoot>
 
diff --git a/wp-includes/l10n.php b/wp-includes/l10n.php
index 4daff90f26..ac8fe4855b 100644
--- a/wp-includes/l10n.php
+++ b/wp-includes/l10n.php
@@ -190,6 +190,21 @@ function _x( $single, $context, $domain = 'default' ) {
 	return translate_with_gettext_context( $single, $context, $domain );
 }
 
+/**
+ * Displays translated string with gettext context
+ * 
+ * @see _x
+ * @since 3.0.0
+ *
+ * @param string $text Text to translate
+ * @param string $context Context information for the translators
+ * @param string $domain Optional. Domain to retrieve the translated text
+ * @return string Translated context string without pipe
+ */
+function _ex( $single, $context, $domain = 'default' ) {
+	echo _x( $single, $context, $domain );
+}
+
 function esc_attr_x( $single, $context, $domain = 'default' ) {
 	return esc_attr( translate_with_gettext_context( $single, $context, $domain ) );
 }