private investigator

noun

: a person not a member of a police force who is licensed to do detective work (such as investigation of suspected wrongdoing or searching for missing persons)

Synonyms of private investigator

• detective
• investigator
• private detective
• private eye

Examples of private investigator in a Sentence

She hired a private investigator to follow her husband.

the retired policeman decided to become a private investigator

Recent Examples on the Web

Depending on the circumstances, this may include private investigators, attorneys, cybersecurity professionals, exchanges, regulators or law enforcement agencies. — Jon Stojan june 23, Miami Herald, 23 June 2026

The counterclaim alleges Wherry hired a private investigator to look into the burglary, and Thompson failed a subsequent polygraph examination. — Rachel Desantis, PEOPLE, 23 June 2026

Ever since Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce announced their engagement, fans have turned into part-time wedding planners, part-time private investigators and full-time internet detectives. — Bryan West, USA Today, 19 June 2026

But when one of them is murdered, private investigator Aubrey Merritt and her assistant Olivia Blunt must unravel decades of secrets and fractured loyalties to uncover the killer. — Kait Hanson, Southern Living, 13 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1940, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for private investigator

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

Kids Definition

private investigator

noun

: a person who does detective work and is not a member of a police force

Legal Definition

private investigator

noun

: a person not a member of a police force who is licensed to do detective work (as investigation of suspected wrongdoing or searching for missing persons)