hire 1 of 2

hire

2 of 2

noun

Synonym Chooser

How is the word hire different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of hire are charter, lease, let, and rent. While all these words mean "to engage or grant for use at a price," hire and let, strictly speaking, are complementary terms, hire implying the act of engaging or taking for use and let the granting of use.

we hired a car for the summer
decided to let the cottage to a young couple

In what contexts can charter take the place of hire?

The synonyms charter and hire are sometimes interchangeable, but charter applies to the hiring or letting of a vehicle usually for exclusive use.

charter a bus to go to the game

When can lease be used instead of hire?

The words lease and hire can be used in similar contexts, but lease strictly implies a letting under the terms of a contract but is often applied to hiring on a lease.

the diplomat leased an apartment for a year

When is it sensible to use rent instead of hire?

Although the words rent and hire have much in common, rent stresses the payment of money for the full use of property and may imply either hiring or letting.

instead of buying a house, they decided to rent
will not rent to families with children

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hire
Verb
The hunters are hired to kill them, but Richards has to survive to win the prize money to help his sick daughter. Clare Fisher, PEOPLE, 18 Oct. 2025 The report cited internal documents showing Salesforce pitching itself as a tool to boost hiring for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which seeks to ramp up deportations across the country, and suggesting how AI could help evaluate tips and improve ICE investigations. Ramishah Maruf, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2025
Noun
Jordan Alexander, The Onyx Agency’s first hire and now vice president, helped lay the foundation for everything that followed. Sara Smith, Variety, 15 Oct. 2025 That one-in-a-million hire signed the paperwork and is officially on board. Rebecca Knight, Harvard Business Review, 14 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for hire
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hire
Verb
  • Private event spaces and a rooftop terrace can also be rented out for celebrations and events, according to Topgolf.
    Talia McWright, Twin Cities, 16 Oct. 2025
  • Some are dilapidated and need tens of thousands of dollars in renovations before they can be rented out again.
    Naaman Zhou, New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • But American manufacturing looks very different from five decades ago, when millions of workers were employed to perform specific tasks along assembly lines.
    Joel Williams, CNN Money, 18 Oct. 2025
  • Companies that employ geopolitical foresight will be better equipped to navigate disruption and unlock growth opportunities.
    Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 18 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • In other states, there would be no change to the program, and DACA recipients would still be granted employment authorization documents.
    Matthew Adams, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Oct. 2025
  • Additionally, the school did not give Lea 180 days notice of her firing, as outlined in her employment agreement, according to the lawsuit.
    Caroline Zimmerman, Kansas City Star, 21 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • The district also seeks a maintenance and operations budget override of 15% for class sizes, alternative education programs, electives, teacher salaries, specialty schools, safety and support services and athletic programs.
    Erick Trevino, AZCentral.com, 17 Oct. 2025
  • The terms of Mike Hill’s contract will be honored, including a financial payout of his $420,000 base salary through June 30, 2030.
    Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 17 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Revolutionary groups, often recruited from universities and the intelligentsia, were soon carrying out terrorist attacks in the cities.
    Karl Ove Knausgaard, New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2025
  • Ring of Fire Skull recruited Dusty Summers from a club in Las Vegas.
    Keith Sharon, Nashville Tennessean, 21 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Many immigrants without legal status were earning wages that put them below the federal government’s poverty line, MPI found, although around 31 percent reported being able to own a home.
    Dan Gooding, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
  • This project will create those 225 positions through 2030, with a minimum average wage of $108,400.
    Brian Gordon, Charlotte Observer, 21 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The Lowdown is paying tribute to its late star, Graham Greene.
    Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 22 Oct. 2025
  • Their separation came five years after the couple were entangled in the Operation Varsity Blues scandal, pleading guilty to wire and mail fraud related to paying hundreds of thousands in bribes to get their daughters into the University of Southern California.
    Tracy Wright, FOXNews.com, 21 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Upon the basis of these findings, Congress declares that the constitutional right of citizens to vote is denied or abridged in some areas by the requirement of the payment of a poll tax as a precondition to voting.
    JSTOR Daily, JSTOR Daily, 17 Oct. 2025
  • In an interview with Fortune, cofounder and CEO Renaud Laplanche explained that Upgrade managed to thrive during a broader reckoning for neobanks because of product diversification and a focus on loans, which can offer a far greater margin than transaction payments.
    Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Hire.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hire. Accessed 23 Oct. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on hire

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!