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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of private detective
In places like Altadena, the brunt was endured by low-income households, many inhabited by renters rather than owners—not the sort of folk who could pay for ample insurance coverage, let alone for private detectives.
—
Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2025
That version had Zendaya’s Rue grow up to be a private detective.
—Zoe Guy, Vulture, 10 Feb. 2025
Bogart—best known as the swaggering nightclub owner from Casablanca and the scotch-slinging private detective from The Maltese Falcon—has been dead since the 1950s.
—Michael Waters, The Atlantic, 6 Dec. 2024
Winbush plays a former FBI agent and old friend of Ted's who now works as a private detective, according to Variety.
—Randall Colburn, EW.com, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for private detective
Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2025
That version had Zendaya’s Rue grow up to be a private detective.
—Zoe Guy, Vulture, 10 Feb. 2025
Bogart—best known as the swaggering nightclub owner from Casablanca and the scotch-slinging private detective from The Maltese Falcon—has been dead since the 1950s.
—Michael Waters, The Atlantic, 6 Dec. 2024
Winbush plays a former FBI agent and old friend of Ted's who now works as a private detective, according to Variety.
—Randall Colburn, EW.com, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for private detective
Recent Examples of Synonyms for private detective
Noun
-
No one was in custody and detectives were investigating.—
Deanese Williams-Harris,
Chicago Tribune,
22 Mar. 2025
-
From there, detectives were able to identify the social media accounts associated with the sales and obtain a search warrant, police said.—
Lillie Davidson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
22 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
The government's own investigators have repeatedly found serious problems in immigration detention centers around the country.—
Lauren Villagran,
USA TODAY,
23 Mar. 2025
-
In a missing persons poster provided by the sheriff's office, investigators wrote that the family had rented a 2024 white BMW with California license plate number 9KHN768.—
Charlotte Phillipp,
People.com,
23 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
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
-
In that time, Will has started over as a private eye in Soddy-Daisy, Tenn.—
Ryan Schwartz,
TVLine,
7 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Her turn as savant-like private investigator Holly Gibney in HBO’s adaptation of Stephen King’s The Outsider is a remarkable one.—
Sezin Koehler,
EW.com,
28 Feb. 2025
-
Davis’ lawyers filed a motion saying new witness testimony from a private investigator could prove that Davis was not in Las Vegas at the time of Shakur’s killing in September 1996.—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
19 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Private detective.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/private%20detective. Accessed 1 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share