Lexic.us

Definition of Hired gun

1. Noun. A professional killer who uses a gun.

Definition of Hired gun

1. Noun. A person who is employed as an armed guard, enforcer, or mercenary and who is prepared to use gunplay or similar violent methods in order to assert the interests of his or her employer. ¹

2. Noun. (idiomatic by extension) A person who is employed to advance the interests of his or her employer, especially in a vigorous manner using such methods as political lobbying, legal advocacy, or persuasion. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Lexicographical Neighbors of Hired Gun

Literary usage of Hired gun

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. Melton and Homespun: Nature and Sport in Prose and Verse by J. M. M. B. Durham, R. J. Richardson (1913)
"... THE hired gun-DOG " WHERE can I hire a really well-broken and reliable retriever or spaniel ? I can spare but a couple of weeks in September away from ..."

2. Jehovah Himself Has Become Kingby Robert King by Robert King (2005)
"even siding with convicted pedophiles and employing non- witness, "hired-gun" lawyers to protect "kingdom interests." Most shockingly, the Watchtower's ..."

3. Journal by California Legislature (1905)
"This company went out into the Midway District and jumped every piece of land that there was in that district, and they hired gun-fighters to hold the land ..."

4. Change Is the Rule: Practical Actions for Change: On Target, on Time, on Budget by Winford E. Holland (2000)
"... management retreat (frequently with super-casual dress, interspersed work and play sessions, and, of course, the hired gun facilitator). ..."

5. Military Ethics: Reflections on Principles-The Profession of Arms, Military edited by Malham M. Wakin (1994)
"... professional and a hired gun. To be a professional is above all to possess a sense of calling. What calls one person to be a physician, another to be a ..."

Other Resources: