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Tue 21 Sep, 2004 12:43 pm
Hi..how are you doing ?..I'm fine
A friend of mine told me that his sister came across a word that she couldn't translate.This word is ( hatchet man ) .I know that the hatchet is an Indian weapon . The question is, what is the more used word now, hatchet man or hitman ?.I know also that it's slang.
Thanks
both are slang
If you will allow me:
Hitman is hired to kill an opponent.
Hatchet man is hired to do the dirty work, not necessarily to kill anyone.
So , a hatchet man would do anything for money , maybe.Is this make him like a mercenary?.Is there a synonymous for a hitman ?
A hitman is an assassin.
Here a dictionary definition of a hatchet man:
1 : one hired for murder, coercion, or attack
2 a : a writer specializing in invective b : a person hired to perform underhanded or unscrupulous tasks (as ruin reputations)
Sometimes the term "hatchet man" is used in business colloquially to indicate a person whose duties include doing the more, let us say, unpalatable things, around the office. He may be the one who does the firing, or who argues with the clients. Often a boss will use a "hatchet man", so that he remains the "good guy". It is the business equivalent of what is called in police lingo, "good cop, bad cop".
Mac...I excluded murder for hatchet man only because recent usage has softened his job description.
I agree, panzade, just thought I'd be thorough.
Hatchet men were figures in the early tong wars. The other definitions are derivitive.
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