investigator

noun

in·​ves·​ti·​ga·​tor in-ˈve-stə-ˌgā-tər 

plural investigators

: one who investigates something: such as

a

: detective

a private investigator

Debra Winger plays the investigator who becomes fixated on identifying a killer …

—Margaret Rauch

b

: a person who conducts experiments or is involved in scientific studies for research

the lead investigator in a clinical trial

For dialect recording, it is best for the investigator to take down as full and accurate notes as possible without slowing down the pace of the interview.

—Ravin I. McDavid, Jr.

Synonyms

• researcher

Examples of investigator in a Sentence

investigators who discovered new evidence that the universe was much older than had been previously estimated

the investigator in charge of the case was touted as an expert at tracing stolen art

Recent Examples on the Web

Two of the victims, both of whom were women in their early 20s, told investigators they were raped at the tattoo studio, per the release. —Nicole Acosta, PEOPLE, 29 Oct. 2025

Tracing them to Maduro would take federal investigators months. —Joshua Goodman, Fortune, 28 Oct. 2025

Following the arrest, Johns Hopkins University Police Chief Branville Bard confirmed that investigators tracked the suspect’s movements throughout the day of the incident. —Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 28 Oct. 2025

One of the suspects has dual citizenship in France and Mali, and the other is a dual citizen of France and Algeria, investigators said, adding that both were already known to police from past burglary cases. —Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 28 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1538, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing investigator

• co-investigator
• private investigator

Rhymes for investigator

• accelerator
• accumulator
• adjudicator
• administrator
• appropriator
• articulator
• attenuator
• bronchodilator
• collaborator
• communicator
• conciliator
• cooperator