hired gun

noun

, Informal.

1. a person hired to kill someone, as a gunfighter or professional killer.
2. a person hired to bear arms and fight for another, as a bodyguard or mercenary.
3. a person, as a politician or lobbyist, skilled at attaining power for others.
4. a person hired to resolve difficult problems or disputes or to handle complex legal or business problems.

Word History and Origins

Origin of hired gun¹

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

He accuses me of being a "hired gun" as if I am an easily bought cypher for right wing propaganda.

From The Daily Beast

Dimon, by contrast, is a hired gun—an employee paid to run a publicly traded company.

From The Daily Beast

Being fired is dehumanizing in any event, but to get the news from a "hired gun" only makes matters worse.

From The Daily Beast

Murray himself was at the wheel and, sitting beside him, was another man equally familiar–it was Dave, his hired gun-man.

From Project Gutenberg