headhunt

US/ˈhɛdˌhʌnt/

verbC1Very rare — outside the 30,000 commonest English words, so you will meet it in writing rather than in speechToo rare in one of the two pools to compare — fewer than 20 uses in speech or in writing

Other forms: headhunting, headhunted

To headhunt is to approach somebody in another company and tempt them away. Headhunt a rival's team, be headhunted, headhunt for the top job.

It is done quietly and usually through an agency, since nobody wants their employer to know. The best people to headhunt are the ones who were not looking, which is what makes it worth paying for.

Definitions of headhunt

1verbheadhuntTo approach someone in another company and tempt them away.C1
“They tried to headhunt half the engineering department in a month.”

headhunt is a recruiting.

Where it comes from

a back-formation from headhunter.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

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