as in detective
a person not on the police force who investigates criminal or illicit activity or searches for missing persons
unable to get the interest of the police, they hired a private eye to find their missing daughter
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of private eye
Set in 1979, the series follows Leila, a 19-year-old Pakistani-Canadian young woman with a love of film and pulp novels who travels to California to reconnect with her estranged uncle – a semi-retired private eye once celebrated for having married the starlet he was originally hired to find.
—
Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 20 May 2026
That one is set in Metropia, a gigantic city in an alternate future as seen from 1939, where private eye Raymond Gunn is drawn into a case involving aliens, murder and a multimedia star named Venus Nova.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 7 May 2026
The Palladino Files – When legendary private eye Jack Palladino is murdered, one of his old targets, Ronan Farrow,takes up the case.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 21 Apr. 2026
Krysten Ritter plays Jessica Jones, a former superhero battling PTSD and working as a private eye.
—David Faris, TheWeek, 20 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for private eye
Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 20 May 2026
That one is set in Metropia, a gigantic city in an alternate future as seen from 1939, where private eye Raymond Gunn is drawn into a case involving aliens, murder and a multimedia star named Venus Nova.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 7 May 2026
The Palladino Files – When legendary private eye Jack Palladino is murdered, one of his old targets, Ronan Farrow,takes up the case.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 21 Apr. 2026
Krysten Ritter plays Jessica Jones, a former superhero battling PTSD and working as a private eye.
—David Faris, TheWeek, 20 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for private eye
Recent Examples of Synonyms for private eye
Noun
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Applegate refused to leave until police officers arrived, according to the detective, a threat management expert.—
Dennis Romero,
NBC news,
2 June 2026
-
Flim-flam men and demonic detectives to the front.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
2 June 2026
Noun
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In response, the state decided to hire outside investigators to review some of these complaints.—
Sam Tabachnik,
Denver Post,
31 May 2026
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The suspect was identified by police as 21-year-old Trevon Williams, also an Arizona resident, who investigators said met the victim outside the rental.—
Hannah Elsmore,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
30 May 2026
Noun
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In Charlie's Angels, Liu, Barrymore, 51, and Diaz, 53, star as three women working in a private detective agency.—
Staff Author,
PEOPLE,
26 Apr. 2026
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The movie was made even stranger by then-Hollywood heavyweights like Jackie Chan, Whoopi Goldberg, and Robert Evans playing heightened versions of themselves — not to mention an unsettling performance by Harvey Weinstein as a private detective that has, to put it mildly, not aged well.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
15 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Though an exhaustive search was conducted, including an intensive investigation by authorities, private investigators and true-crime enthusiasts, Natalee, who was 18 at the time, was never found.—
Lynsey Eidell,
PEOPLE,
30 May 2026
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Prime Video’s Spider-Noir set in the sultry crime world of Depression-era New York City, follows an older Spider-Man, Ben Reilly, now working as a private investigator after leaving his superhero past behind him.—
Destiny Jackson,
Deadline,
30 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Private eye.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/private%20eye. Accessed 4 Jun. 2026.
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