put a contract out on (one)
slang To order for one to be assassinated. Usually said in reference to organized crime. The mob put a contract out on the accountant because he had agreed to testify in court. It turns out that he had put a contract out on the owner of the business so that he could gain control of it.
put a contract out on someone
[for an underworld character] to order someone to kill someone else. The mob put out a contract on some crook from Detroit.