hit man
noun
1
: a professional assassin who works for a crime syndicate
2
: hatchet man
Example Sentences
She hired a hit man to kill her ex-husband.
Recent Examples on the Web In selecting the hit man to whack Jimmy Hoffa, The Mafia don chose his very best offer. 
Pat Myers, Washington Post, 18 Aug. 2022 But there’s some confusion as to who’s in which room, who’s being videotaped, who’s taken the money, who’s hired a hit man -- and why the accountant keeps taking off her clothes. Shirley Macfarland, cleveland, 11 Aug. 2022 On April 28, a machine-gun-toting hit man walked into the lobby and, in a spray of bullets, assassinated 19-year-old Susan — mistaking her for Cheryl — and 27-year-old Scott Piechowicz. Stephanie Mansfield, Good Housekeeping, 11 Aug. 2022 Hopper and Joyce make it to the control room with the self-destruct keys and are immediately met with Grigori (Andrey Ivchenko), the Russian hit man who’s been stalking them all season. Helena Andrews-dyer, Washington Post, 27 May 2022 Set in Northern Ireland, its plot involves a former IRA hit man, Sean Dillon, the subject of many of his earlier books, as well as an al-Qaeda terrorist leader, the White House, the CIA, the British government and several subplots. Washington Post, 11 Apr. 2022 Officers would mortally wound the alleged hit man in a firefight at his house, police said. Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2022 Carlo Gaetano Orlando, the hit man allegedly sent by Esposito to kill Ms. Maresca’s husband, was jailed for 30 years. Washington Post, 5 Jan. 2022 Currently, Reeves is reprising his role as the titular hit man in John Wick: Chapter Four, which is shooting in Germany, France, and Japan. Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 19 Oct. 2021 See More
Pat Myers, Washington Post, 18 Aug. 2022 But there’s some confusion as to who’s in which room, who’s being videotaped, who’s taken the money, who’s hired a hit man -- and why the accountant keeps taking off her clothes. Shirley Macfarland, cleveland, 11 Aug. 2022 On April 28, a machine-gun-toting hit man walked into the lobby and, in a spray of bullets, assassinated 19-year-old Susan — mistaking her for Cheryl — and 27-year-old Scott Piechowicz. Stephanie Mansfield, Good Housekeeping, 11 Aug. 2022 Hopper and Joyce make it to the control room with the self-destruct keys and are immediately met with Grigori (Andrey Ivchenko), the Russian hit man who’s been stalking them all season. Helena Andrews-dyer, Washington Post, 27 May 2022 Set in Northern Ireland, its plot involves a former IRA hit man, Sean Dillon, the subject of many of his earlier books, as well as an al-Qaeda terrorist leader, the White House, the CIA, the British government and several subplots. Washington Post, 11 Apr. 2022 Officers would mortally wound the alleged hit man in a firefight at his house, police said. Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2022 Carlo Gaetano Orlando, the hit man allegedly sent by Esposito to kill Ms. Maresca’s husband, was jailed for 30 years. Washington Post, 5 Jan. 2022 Currently, Reeves is reprising his role as the titular hit man in John Wick: Chapter Four, which is shooting in Germany, France, and Japan. Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 19 Oct. 2021 See More Word History
First Known Use
1963, in the meaning defined at sense 1
hit man
noun
1
as in torpedo
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- torpedo
- murderer
- assassin
- butcher
- massacrer
- cutthroat
- executioner
- triggerman
- manslayer
- killer
- slayer
- slaughterer
- bravo
- homicide
- murderess
2
as in hired gun
Synonyms & Similar Words
- hired gun
- hatchet man
- polemist
- attack dog
- polemicist
- barracuda
- shark
- mudslinger