sleuth

1 of 2

noun

ˈslüth 

: detective

sleuth

2 of 2

verb

sleuthed; sleuthing; sleuths

intransitive verb

: to act as a detective : search for information

transitive verb

: to search for and discover

Did you know?

"They were the footprints of a gigantic hound!" Those canine tracks in Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles set the great Sherlock Holmes sleuthing on the trail of a murderer. It was a case of art imitating etymology. When Middle English speakers first borrowed sleuth from Old Norse, the term referred to "the track of an animal or person." In Scotland, sleuthhound referred to a bloodhound used to hunt game or track down fugitives from justice. In 19th-century U.S. English, sleuthhound became an epithet for a detective and was soon shortened to sleuth. From there, it was only a short leap to turning sleuth into a verb describing what a sleuth does.

Synonyms

Noun

• detective
• dick
• gumshoe
• hawkshaw
• investigator
• operative
• private detective
• private eye
• private investigator
• shamus [slang]
• sherlock
• sleuthhound

Examples of sleuth in a Sentence

Noun

the popular TV sleuth lives a much more action-packed life than do his real-world counterparts

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Online sleuths connected the offending fan to a New Jersey management consulting firm, BCT Partners, that denounced its employee’s behavior. —David K. Li, NBC News, 15 Jan. 2025

If that wasn't enough, the book also features personal reflections from Swift herself—including a note to her fans at the back, which has internet sleuths spiraling. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 29 Nov. 2024

Verb

Since the couple — whose relationship was confirmed in 2021 — have not spoken about the engagement, the internet has gone wild trying to sleuth out information. —Kevin Lynn, Newsweek, 6 Jan. 2025

Some of it can be fun, as players sleuth their way into restricted areas, or suss out how to solve riddles. —Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 10 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

short for sleuthhound

First Known Use

Noun

1872, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1900, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

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Kids Definition

sleuth

1 of 2 noun

ˈslüth 

: detective entry 2

sleuth

2 of 2 verb

: to act as a detective

Etymology

Noun

a shortened form of sleuthhound "a dog that follows a track or trail by scent," from Middle English sleuth "a track or trail"; of Norse origin

Word Origin

In Middle English the word sleuth meant "the track or trail left by an animal or person." After the 15th century sleuth was seldom used except in such words as sleuth-dog and sleuthhound. These were terms for a dog trained to follow a track or trail. The sleuthhound became well known for its eager and thorough pursuit of an object. Later the word sleuthhound came to be used for a "detective." The modern word sleuth first came into use as a shortened form of sleuthhound.