detected; detecting; detects
1
: to discover the true character of
detecting drug smugglers
2
: to discover or determine the existence, presence, or fact of
detect alcohol in the blood
Do I detect a note of sarcasm in your voice?
3
: to work as a detective
Examples of detect in a Sentence
The test is used to detect the presence of alcohol in the blood.
This type of cancer is difficult to detect in its early stages.
Recent Examples on the Web
Six days ago, it was also detected close to Berkeley.
—
Ca Earthquake Bot, Sacbee.com, 6 Sep. 2025
Several private groups have launched their own satellites to measure atmospheric chemicals, but these have primarily focused on detecting localized methane emissions for regulatory purposes, and not on global trends.
—Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 6 Sep. 2025
Researchers at Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust discovered that an AI stethoscope can detect heart failure at an early stage.
—Staff, FOXNews.com, 6 Sep. 2025
Traditional X-ray imaging struggles to detect sperm due to their tiny size, low density, and near transparency to radiation.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 5 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detect
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Ca Earthquake Bot, Sacbee.com, 6 Sep. 2025
Several private groups have launched their own satellites to measure atmospheric chemicals, but these have primarily focused on detecting localized methane emissions for regulatory purposes, and not on global trends.
—Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 6 Sep. 2025
Researchers at Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust discovered that an AI stethoscope can detect heart failure at an early stage.
—Staff, FOXNews.com, 6 Sep. 2025
Traditional X-ray imaging struggles to detect sperm due to their tiny size, low density, and near transparency to radiation.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 5 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detect
Cite this Entry
“Detect.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/detect. Accessed 7 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
detect
verb
de·tect
di-ˈtekt 
: to discover the nature, existence, presence, or fact of
detect the approach of an airplane
detection
noun
-ˈtek-shən
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