sleuth

1 of 2

noun

ˈslüth 

: detective

sleuth

2 of 2

verb

sleuthed; sleuthing; sleuths

intransitive verb

: to act as a detective : search for information

transitive verb

: to search for and discover

Did you know?

"They were the footprints of a gigantic hound!" Those canine tracks in Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles set the great Sherlock Holmes sleuthing on the trail of a murderer. It was a case of art imitating etymology. When Middle English speakers first borrowed sleuth from the Old Norse word slōth, the term referred to the track of an animal or person. In Scotland, sleuth hund referred to a kind of bloodhound used to hunt game or track down fugitives from justice. In 19th-century U.S. English, sleuthhound, soon shortened to sleuth, began to be used for a detective. From there, sleuth slipped into verb use to apply to what a sleuth does.

Synonyms

Noun

• detective
• dick
• gumshoe
• hawkshaw
• investigator
• operative
• private detective
• private eye
• private investigator
• shamus [slang]
• sherlock
• sleuthhound

Examples of sleuth in a Sentence

Noun

the popular TV sleuth lives a much more action-packed life than do his real-world counterparts

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The trailers have not given much away, leading online sleuths to form their own theories about how that on-stage moment in L.A., which Tesfaye has attributed to psychological factors like stress, plays into the narrative. —Jessica Wang, EW.com, 8 May 2025

The divisive case has attracted attention from YouTubers, TikTokers and internet sleuths alike. —Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 23 Apr. 2025

Verb

Women will literally sleuth at an expert level on the fly instead of going to therapy. —Andy Andersen, Vulture, 18 Apr. 2025

Jodi sleuthed the web for inspiration and came across a miniature outfit that paid tribute to Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka, replete with his signature Bears sweater, mustache, and shades. —Sean Gregory, TIME, 7 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

short for sleuthhound

First Known Use

Noun

1872, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1900, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Rhymes for sleuth

• luth
• muth
• sooth
• tooth
• youth
• bluetooth
• forsooth
• sawtooth
• tolbooth
• uncouth
• untruth
• vermouth

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Kids Definition

sleuth

1 of 2 noun

ˈslüth 

: detective entry 2

sleuth

2 of 2 verb

: to act as a detective

Etymology

Noun

a shortened form of sleuthhound "a dog that follows a track or trail by scent," from Middle English sleuth "a track or trail"; of Norse origin

Word Origin

In Middle English the word sleuth meant "the track or trail left by an animal or person." After the 15th century sleuth was seldom used except in such words as sleuth-dog and sleuthhound. These were terms for a dog trained to follow a track or trail. The sleuthhound became well known for its eager and thorough pursuit of an object. Later the word sleuthhound came to be used for a "detective." The modern word sleuth first came into use as a shortened form of sleuthhound.