headhunter
Americannoun
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headhunters
plural
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a person who engages in headhunting.
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a personnel recruiter for a corporation or executive recruitment agency.
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an executive recruitment agency.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of headhunter
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Platner, who had no political experience, was recruited into the race by Daniel Moraff, an Ivy League–educated consultant who served as a headhunter for progressive and unconventional Democratic candidates.
From Slate ● Jul. 11, 2026
A series of short bets made in the third quarter of 2025 on software companies including headhunter marketplace ZipRecruiter and IT-services provider Unisys initially failed to deliver.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 4, 2026
ByteDance, which has the biggest AI team in Chinese tech, sometimes pays salaries two or three times the market average to recruit top talent, said industry headhunter Shen Wei.
From Barron's ● Feb. 14, 2026
In March, the city hired the Northern California-based headhunter Bob Murray & Associates to conduct the nationwide chief search — the same firm that helped pick Bratton more than two decades ago.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2024
Working as a kind of headhunter, John became the middleman, finding the right skilled, trustworthy crews to do the jobs.
From "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind" by William Kamkwamba
Europe’s biggest bank by assets tapped headhunters in late 2024 to find a replacement for Mark Tucker, who has since left to join Hong Kong insurer AIA.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 2, 2025
In November, Britain's domestic intelligence agency warned that Chinese spies disguised as headhunters had targeted parliamentarians online.
From Barron's ● Dec. 2, 2025
The alert said individuals working on behalf of the Chinese Ministry of State Security were posing as "headhunters" on platforms like LinkedIn and targeting people working in British politics to obtain insider information.
From BBC ● Nov. 21, 2025
Investment bankers and headhunters say the talent flight could change the competitive position of many banks when technology firms decide to embark on big deals again.
From Reuters ● Jun. 22, 2023
Another 18.8 percent used formal means — advertisements, headhunters — and roughly 20 percent applied directly.
From "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
