gunslinger

American  

[guhn-sling-er] / ˈgʌnˌslɪŋ ər /

noun

1. Informal. gunfighter.

2. Slang. a person who acts in an aggressive and decisive manner, especially in business or politics, as an investor who takes large risks in seeking large, quick gains.

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gunslinger British  

/ ˈɡʌnˌslɪŋə /

noun

1. slang a gunfighter or gunman, esp in the Old West

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Other Word Forms

• gunslinging adjective

Etymology

Origin of gunslinger

First recorded in 1950–55; gun ¹ + sling ¹ + -er ¹

Example Sentences

Circling back to the 1960 Sturges movie, near the end of the flick a character remarks that the Magnificent Seven gunslingers were “like the wind, blowing over the land and passing on.”

From Barron's

Circling back to the 1960 Sturges movie, near the end of the flick a character remarks that the Magnificent Seven gunslingers were “like the wind, blowing over the land and passing on.”

From Barron's

Oil boss Scott Sheffield has a new job: activist gunslinger.

From The Wall Street Journal

Julie is intended as a fairly good-natured, warmly attractive and decidedly incongruous gunslinger.

From The Wall Street Journal

If only for a game, the former gunslinger was more of a game manager.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bandit
• crook
• desperado
• fugitive
• gangster
• hoodlum
• hooligan
• marauder
• mobster
• outcast
• pariah
• robber