assassin

noun

as·​sas·​sin ə-ˈsa-sᵊn 

1

: a person who commits murder

especially : one who murders a politically important person either for money or from fanatical adherence to a cause

2

Assassin : a member of a Shia Muslim sect who at the time of the Crusades was sent out on a suicidal mission to murder prominent enemies

Synonyms

• murderer
• killer

Examples of assassin in a Sentence

John Wilkes Booth was the assassin of Abraham Lincoln.

shot down by an unknown assassin

Recent Examples on the Web

With the help of an unpredictable assassin named Louie (Butler, who also plays the Pope), the pair embark on a dark and murderous journey to steal and authenticate the priceless work. —Nada Aboul Kheir, Deadline, 3 Sep. 2025

The two Kill Bill films, while still about crime and criminals and ninja assassins, set themselves apart from his earlier works. —Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025

The wuxia drama Word of Honor follows Zhou Zishu (Zhang Zhehan), a weary assassin seeking redemption. —EW.com, 31 Aug. 2025

The South Korea setting and its random cuisine scene add dashes of originality as believed-to-be-dead spy David Jung (Kim) tries to mend a broken relationship with his daughter Rebecca (Reina Hardesty), now the top assassin for Caddis. —Randy Myers, Mercury News, 30 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Medieval Latin assassinus, from Arabic ḥashshāshīn, plural of ḥashshāsh worthless person, literally, hashish user, from hashīsh hashish

First Known Use

circa 1520, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing assassin

• assassin bug

Rhymes for assassin

• unfasten
• bason
• casson
• fasten
• cytochalasin
• diapason

Kids Definition

assassin

noun

as·​sas·​sin ə-ˈsas-ən 

: a person who kills another person

especially : one who murders a politically important person either for pay or from loyalty to a cause