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

Believing Stratten was having an affair, Snider hired a private investigator. —Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 14 Mar. 2026

The report has been circulating in Louisiana for months, according to people familiar with the effort to uncover it, and last fall, a private investigator requested public records related to the woman that have since been used to try to undermine her credibility. —Michael Scherer, The Atlantic, 11 Mar. 2026

Heather had a friend who was training to be a private investigator. —Erin Moriarty, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2026

Joe Gibbs Racing hired a private investigator to follow former competition director Chris Gabehart and Spire Motorsports co-owner Jeff Dickerson, according to recent court declarations in the ongoing federal lawsuit JGR is pursuing against Gabehart and Spire. —Jordan Bianchi, New York Times, 8 Mar. 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)