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)
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
As per IMDb, Spider-Noir follows: An aging and down on his luck private investigator in 1930s New York is forced to grapple with his past life as the city's one and only superhero.
—
Billie Melissa, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 May 2025
In fact, the shadowy figures were private investigators, hired by a top racetrack in Kentucky to investigate Yakteen’s former boss – the legendary trainer Bob Baffert – to try to find evidence that the famous white-haired horseman doped his horses.
—Katie Bo Lillis, CNN Money, 2 May 2025
The response was sparse, but later, a private investigator who had seen a TV interview with Mr. Wright, for whom David had had no address, advised David to make an effort to call him.
—Serge F. Kovaleski, New York Times, 29 Apr. 2025
The whistleblower lawsuit is one of many filed by private investigators or corporations empowered to do so by a law aimed at preventing fraud against the federal government.
—Sharon Bernstein, Sacramento Bee, 25 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for private investigator
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Billie Melissa, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 May 2025
In fact, the shadowy figures were private investigators, hired by a top racetrack in Kentucky to investigate Yakteen’s former boss – the legendary trainer Bob Baffert – to try to find evidence that the famous white-haired horseman doped his horses.
—Katie Bo Lillis, CNN Money, 2 May 2025
The response was sparse, but later, a private investigator who had seen a TV interview with Mr. Wright, for whom David had had no address, advised David to make an effort to call him.
—Serge F. Kovaleski, New York Times, 29 Apr. 2025
The whistleblower lawsuit is one of many filed by private investigators or corporations empowered to do so by a law aimed at preventing fraud against the federal government.
—Sharon Bernstein, Sacramento Bee, 25 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for private investigator
Cite this Entry
“Private investigator.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/private%20investigator. Accessed 8 Jun. 2025.
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