as in detective
a person not on the police force who investigates criminal or illicit activity or searches for missing persons
when the police insisted that it was an accident and not murder, she hired a private detective
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of private detective
Created by Michael Schur, the series follows Charles, a widower and retiree, who is hired by a private detective named Julie (Lilah Richcreek Estrada) and goes undercover at a local San Francisco nursing home to solve a theft.
—
Samantha Stutsman, People.com, 21 Nov. 2024
The film’s most enduring legacy, however, is the Dude, a mythic American hero no less than the private detective or the cowboy.
—airmail.news, 12 Oct. 2024
Colorado private detective Ollie Gray and his partner, John Sangustin, were hired by the Ramseys in 1999.
—Erin Moriarty, CBS News, 21 Dec. 2024
Per the report, citing one of three sources familiar with the matter, U.S. authorities believe the DCI Group, a public affairs and lobbying company working for Exxon back in 2015, had compiled a list of targets and provided them to an Israeli private detective, who then outsourced the hacking.
—Thomas Brewster, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for private detective
Samantha Stutsman, People.com, 21 Nov. 2024
The film’s most enduring legacy, however, is the Dude, a mythic American hero no less than the private detective or the cowboy.
—airmail.news, 12 Oct. 2024
Colorado private detective Ollie Gray and his partner, John Sangustin, were hired by the Ramseys in 1999.
—Erin Moriarty, CBS News, 21 Dec. 2024
Per the report, citing one of three sources familiar with the matter, U.S. authorities believe the DCI Group, a public affairs and lobbying company working for Exxon back in 2015, had compiled a list of targets and provided them to an Israeli private detective, who then outsourced the hacking.
—Thomas Brewster, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for private detective
Recent Examples of Synonyms for private detective
Noun
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This is a complex incident, and detectives continue to work through all aspects of the investigation.—
Ross Rosenfeld,
Newsweek,
26 Feb. 2025
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Heidenreich has denied involvement in his girlfriend's death, per the AAP, despite admitting that his stepfather — a former Cairns police officer — was friendly with a detective working on the murder case.—
Becca Longmire,
People.com,
26 Feb. 2025
Noun
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The National Transportation Safety Board said a team of U.S. investigators will participate in the probe.—
Laya Neelakandan,Leslie Josephs,
CNBC,
17 Feb. 2025
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The man, who investigators believe was White and around 35 years old, offered Ronnie and his wife a short-term job at a logging camp that would also purportedly provide daycare for their children.—
Sean Neumann,
People.com,
16 Feb. 2025
Noun
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These private eyes spy on children in order to determine who is or isn’t living within the district’s strict attendance boundaries.—
Tim Deroche,
Orange County Register,
28 Jan. 2025
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In that time, Will has started over as a private eye in Soddy-Daisy, Tenn.—
Ryan Schwartz,
TVLine,
7 Jan. 2025
Noun
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That meeting alone is enough for a federal corruption probe, according to Tom Brennan, the family's private investigator for nearly a decade and a former Pennsylvania state trooper.—
Michael Ruiz,
Fox News,
16 Feb. 2025
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According to court records, Recio agreed to bribe Costanzo, who was the DEA supervisor in Miami, in exchange for his providing the private investigator with confidential information about narcotics investigations.—
Jay Weaver,
Miami Herald,
13 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Private detective.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/private%20detective. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
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