as in detectives
a person not on the police force who investigates criminal or illicit activity or searches for missing persons
when the police insisted that it was an accident and not murder, she hired a private detective
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for private detectives
Noun
-
After being taken to the precinct to speak with detectives, Stevenson was booked into the Shasta County Jail on a murder charge, where he is being held without bail.—
Chris Spargo,
People.com,
3 Sep. 2025 -
But less than two weeks later, the detectives called him and said the money was on its way back.—
David Clarey,
jsonline.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The fourth installment of the freaky horror franchise brings back Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga one more time as paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
3 Sep. 2025
-
The report also said investigators were unable to determine why the Biden administration did not accept the US Air Force’s initial recommendation to move SPACECOM to Huntsville.—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN Money,
2 Sep. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Private detectives.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/private%20detectives. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share