assassin

American  

[uh-sas-in] / əˈsæs ɪn /

noun

1. a murderer, especially one who kills a politically prominent person for fanatical or monetary reasons.

2. (initial capital letter) one of an order of Muslim fanatics, active in Persia and Syria from about 1090 to 1272, whose chief object was to assassinate Crusaders.

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Assassin ¹ British  

/ əˈsæsɪn /

noun

1. a member of a secret sect of Muslim fanatics operating in Persia and Syria from about 1090 to 1256, murdering their victims, usually Crusaders

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assassin ² British  

/ əˈsæsɪn /

noun

1. a murderer, esp one who kills a prominent political figure

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Etymology

Origin of assassin

1525–35; < Medieval Latin assassinī (plural) < Arabic ḥashshāshīn eaters of hashish

Example Sentences

Credits at the end of “Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair” attribute the creation of the Bride assassin to “Q & U” — stark-white capital letters that stand in for Quentin Tarantino and Uma Thurman.

From Los Angeles Times

A perennial target of assassins, James survived the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, when Guy Fawkes and confederates hoped to blow up Parliament.

From The Wall Street Journal

The assassin may have been lost to history by nearly everyone but Stephen Sondheim.

From The Wall Street Journal

As one might expect, a telepathic first grader with a wild imagination who lives with a spy and an assassin can get caught up in plenty of shenanigans.

From Los Angeles Times

Then, as the story goes, Mangione’s photos were released, and the narrative shifted away from the motivation behind Thompson’s killing and toward his purported assassin’s appearance.

From Salon