1
as in researcher
one who observes or studies by close examination and systematic inquiry
investigators who discovered new evidence that the universe was much older than had been previously estimated
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in detective
a person not on the police force who investigates criminal or illicit activity or searches for missing persons
the investigator in charge of the case was touted as an expert at tracing stolen art
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of investigator
The outlet further reported that an investigator testified during the trial, saying Benkired stopped at a cafe minutes after leaving the building with the container and spoke with a man who asked her what was inside it.
—
Liam Quinn, PEOPLE, 27 Oct. 2025
His TikTok account, investigators noted, also featured anarchist symbols and links to anti-government literature.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 27 Oct. 2025
French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez praised investigators for making the arrests in a social media post on Sunday.
—David Brennan, ABC News, 26 Oct. 2025
Duffy said last month that California should never have issued 25% of 145 licenses investigators reviewed.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 26 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for investigator
Liam Quinn, PEOPLE, 27 Oct. 2025
His TikTok account, investigators noted, also featured anarchist symbols and links to anti-government literature.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 27 Oct. 2025
French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez praised investigators for making the arrests in a social media post on Sunday.
—David Brennan, ABC News, 26 Oct. 2025
Duffy said last month that California should never have issued 25% of 145 licenses investigators reviewed.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 26 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for investigator
Recent Examples of Synonyms for investigator
Noun
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The researchers recruited fifty-seven people for interviews through a nonprofit organization that helps low-income people build their credit ratings and financial stability.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
27 Oct. 2025
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Developed by researchers from Adelaide University, the method is a universal and scalable to upcycle common plastics — including PET, PVC, polyethylene and polypropylene and their mixtures — into single-atom catalysts (SACs).—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Oct. 2025
Noun
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At the time, detectives in each jurisdiction had no idea the cases were connected.—
Amanda Lee Myers,
USA Today,
21 Oct. 2025
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But, like any committed noir detective, I was left with more questions than anything else.—
Charlie Markbreiter,
Them.,
21 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Investigator.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/investigator. Accessed 28 Oct. 2025.
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