verb
hire
HEYE-uh
verb
1
To employ someone for pay, or to give someone a job.
"The startup hired three new engineers this month."
"They hired a lawyer to handle the contract."
2
To pay to use something temporarily, such as a car or a venue (mainly British usage).
"We hired a van to move the furniture."
noun
1
A person who has recently been employed, especially as part of a group of new employees.
"She was the company's best hire last year."
2
Payment made for the temporary use of something.
"The hire of the equipment cost fifty pounds a day."
How to Use Hire
Learner’s notes
UK vs US
British English uses "hire" for renting things (hire a car); American English usually says "rent" instead, reserving "hire" mainly for employing people.
Common pairings
hire an employee
hire a car
new hire
for hire
Word Forms
hired past tense, hires plural, Hires plural, hires singular
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The startup _____ three new engineers this month.
Etymology
From Old English hȳr, meaning wages or payment for a service, going back to a Proto-Germanic root for "payment."