recruit
Americannoun
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a newly enlisted or drafted member of the armed forces.
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a new member of a group, organization, or the like.
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a fresh supply of something.
verb (used with object)
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to enlist (a person) for service in one of the armed forces.
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to raise (a force) by enlistment.
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to strengthen or supply (an armed force) with new members.
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to furnish or replenish with a fresh supply; renew.
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to renew or restore (the health, strength, etc.).
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to attempt to acquire the services of (a person) for an employer.
She recruits executives for all the top companies.
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to attempt to enroll or enlist (a member, affiliate, student, or the like).
a campaign to recruit new club members.
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to seek to enroll (an athlete) at a school or college, often with an offer of an athletic scholarship.
verb (used without object)
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to enlist persons for service in one of the armed forces.
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to engage in finding and attracting employees, new members, students, athletes, etc.
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to recover health, strength, etc.
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to gain new supplies of anything lost or wasted.
verb
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to enlist (men) for military service
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to raise or strengthen (an army, navy, etc) by enlistment
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(tr) to enrol or obtain (members, support, etc)
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to furnish or be furnished with a fresh supply; renew
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archaic to recover (health, strength, spirits, etc)
noun
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a newly joined member of a military service
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any new member or supporter
Other Word Forms
- recruitable adjective
- recruiter noun
- recruitment noun
- unrecruitable adjective
- unrecruited adjective
Etymology
Origin of recruit
First recorded in 1635–45; from French, stem of recruter, derivative of recrue “new growth,” noun use of feminine past participle of recroître ( re- re- + croître, from Latin crēscere “to grow”; crescent )
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.
The University of Illinois dangled sweet pay deals to recruit several professional European players to its men’s basketball team.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 29, 2026
The trust is now considering reviewing patients seen before 2023 and is working with NHS England to recruit more expert reviewers.
From BBC • Mar. 28, 2026
In November, Britain's domestic intelligence agency MI5 warned that China was using spies disguised as head-hunters to recruit parliamentarians, through LinkedIn among others.
From Barron's • Mar. 27, 2026
Trial lawyers will now use the L.A. verdict in advertisements to recruit more plaintiffs.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026
He attempted to recruit accomplices in New York City, a place where there were many Lincoln-haters and Confederate sympathizers.
From "Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L. Swanson
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.
