Definition

Noun: A person who is paid to kill someone, typically using a firearm. This term refers specifically to a professional assassin or hitman.

Usage

This noun phrase is used to describe someone whose occupation or paid task is to commit murder. It is a direct and informal synonym for "hitman" or "assassin." It often carries connotations of criminality and cold-blooded professionalism.

Examples

• The crime boss employed a gun for hire to eliminate his rival.
• In the film, the protagonist is a former gun for hire trying to escape his violent past.
• The police suspected the murder was the work of a professional gun for hire.

Advanced Usage

• The phrase can sometimes be used metaphorically to describe someone who is ruthlessly employed to achieve a difficult or unpleasant objective, though this is less common.
  • The company brought in a legal gun for hire to handle the hostile takeover.

Variants and Related Words

• Hireling (n): A person employed to perform routine or menial tasks, often with a negative connotation of being motivated solely by money. While broader, it can contextually relate.
• Mercenary (n): A professional soldier hired to serve in a foreign army. Shares the core concept of being paid to perform violent acts but in a military, rather than purely criminal, context.

Synonyms

• Hitman
• Assassin
• Hired killer
• Contract killer

Related Phrases

• Hired gun: This is a direct synonym and variant of "gun for hire." It can also have the same metaphorical meaning.
  • The defense team's lead attorney was a notorious hired gun.

Noun

1. a professional killer who uses a gun