hire

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hȳr; akin to Old Saxon hūria hire Date: before 12th century 1. a. payment for the temporary use of something b. payment for labor or personal services ; wages 2. a. the act or an instance of hiring b. the state of being hired ; employment 3. British rental — often used attributively 4. one who is hired <

starting wage for the new hires

> II. verb (hired; hiring) Date: before 12th century transitive verb 1. a. to engage the personal services of for a set sum <

hire a crew

> b. to engage the temporary use of for a fixed sum <

hire a hall

> 2. to grant the personal services of or temporary use of for a fixed sum <

hire themselves out

> 3. to get done for pay <

hire the mowing done

> intransitive verb to take employment <

hire out as a guide during the tourist season

> • hirer noun Synonyms: hire, let, lease, rent, charter 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

>. 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

>. 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

>. charter applies to the hiring or letting of a vehicle usually for exclusive use <

charter a bus to go to the game

>.