hireling
1 synonym for hireling, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.
Noun — A worker who is taken on for pay, often to do unpleasant jobs with little freedom to make their own decisions.
Synonyms
Rare, literary or technical
Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.
Etymology
Came into English via Middle English hirlyng, from Old English hȳrling ("hireling, employee"), from Proto-West Germanic *hūʀijuling. It is cognate with West Frisian hierling, Dutch huurling ("hireling, mercenary"), German Low German Hüürling, and German Heuerling. By surface analysis, it is hire + -ling.
Full origin of hireling →