as in detective
a person not on the police force who investigates criminal or illicit activity or searches for missing persons
the retired policeman decided to become a private investigator
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of private investigator
The new Netflix docuseries brings back Tinder Swindler victim Cecilie Fjellhøy and pairs her up with private investigator Brianne Joseph to get deep with these personal stories.
—
Lea Veloso, StyleCaster, 8 Sep. 2025
The suit also alleges that Fox News pressures its guests not to appear on Newsmax and has hired private investigators to target Newsmax executives in an effort to drag down the channel.
—Gene Maddaus, Variety, 5 Sep. 2025
Over six episodes of Love Con Revenge, Fjellhøy teams up with private investigator Brianne Joseph to spotlight the cases of four men and one woman who demanded money from their partners under false pretenses.
—Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 5 Sep. 2025
In Love Con Revenge, Cecilie Fjellhøy teams with a private investigator to work with people who have been targeted by romance scams.
—PC Magazine, 5 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for private investigator
Lea Veloso, StyleCaster, 8 Sep. 2025
The suit also alleges that Fox News pressures its guests not to appear on Newsmax and has hired private investigators to target Newsmax executives in an effort to drag down the channel.
—Gene Maddaus, Variety, 5 Sep. 2025
Over six episodes of Love Con Revenge, Fjellhøy teams up with private investigator Brianne Joseph to spotlight the cases of four men and one woman who demanded money from their partners under false pretenses.
—Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 5 Sep. 2025
In Love Con Revenge, Cecilie Fjellhøy teams with a private investigator to work with people who have been targeted by romance scams.
—PC Magazine, 5 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for private investigator
Recent Examples of Synonyms for private investigator
Noun
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Scott, McDonald and Neary were arrested, but Rackauckas and a Fullerton police detective persuaded Neary to testify against the other two men, according to the motion.—
Tony Saavedra,
Oc Register,
17 Sep. 2025
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Reigle and her team tested about a dozen formulations and viscosities, playing detective to figure out where a whole host of issues was coming from.—
Megan McIntyre,
Allure,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Boelter’s motivation remains unclear, but investigators found a one-and-a-half-page letter, described as rambling and difficult to read, that was ascribed to him.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
16 Sep. 2025
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One of the main enforcers of H-2A rules, the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division, last year had one of the lowest levels of investigators since the H-2A program was launched in the 1980s, Rutgers University researchers found.—
Max Blau,
ProPublica,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
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In the 1999 thriller 8mm, Nicolas Cage plays a private detective who watches a graphic film of a girl’s murder.—
James Hibberd,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Sep. 2025
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In the second movie in Ethan Coen and his wife Tricia Cooke’s lesbian B-movie trilogy (the first was the fizzy Drive Away Dolls), Margaret Qualley plays Honey, a stylish private detective trying to solve a case that involves a cult.—
James Grebey,
Vulture,
22 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The film written by Ethan Coen and Tricia Cooke stars Margaret Qualley as a small-town private eye working a case of strange deaths at a mysterious church.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
24 Aug. 2025
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Short version: In this movie co-written and directed by Ethan Coen, Margaret Qualley plays a swaggering, small-town private eye whose investigations into a series of strange deaths lead her to a mysterious church run by a charismatic (and corrupt) preacher played by Chris Evans.—
Chris Foran,
jsonline.com,
20 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Private investigator.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/private%20investigator. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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