sell-sword

plural sell-swords

1. alternativeAlternative form of sellsword.

   I'm a sell-sword. I make my living because I keep my word. Unreliable mercenaries don't get paid.

   1985, Mary Gentle, Golden Witchbreed, →ISBN, page 189

   2 more examples

   He was a mercenary, a sell-sword, a barbarian out of the forested mountains of Norumbria. A wanderer by nature, he earned his keep wherever he went by the might of his sword-arm, by his skill with weapons.

   1977, Gardner Francis Fox, “Shadow of a Demon”, in The Year's Best Fantasy Stories: 3, →ISBN, page 32

   Bezul saw the sell-swords choose the doorway, not him, and somehow got in front of them, then desperation took control of his mind.

   2003, Lynn Abbey, "The Red Lucky", Thieves' World: Turning Points, Macmillan,, →ISBN, page 303