as in detective
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
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of private detective
Following her performances as southern womanizer Jamie in Drive-Away Dolls and fearless private detective Honey O’Donahue in Honey Don’t!
—
Glenn Garner, Deadline, 13 Aug. 2025
The driver of the vehicle, Ball, began firing shots — injuring both Anne’s chauffeur, Alex Callender, and private detective, James Beaton — before climbing in the front seat and ordering the princess to get out before he was stopped by a passerby.
—Bailey Richards, People.com, 2 Aug. 2025
Holmes, Margaret and Poe run the private detective agency that solves the crimes no one else can.
—Kaycee Sloan, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025
The death of a guest jolts the wedding party and reawakens Stephanie’s dormant private detective career.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for private detective
Glenn Garner, Deadline, 13 Aug. 2025
The driver of the vehicle, Ball, began firing shots — injuring both Anne’s chauffeur, Alex Callender, and private detective, James Beaton — before climbing in the front seat and ordering the princess to get out before he was stopped by a passerby.
—Bailey Richards, People.com, 2 Aug. 2025
Holmes, Margaret and Poe run the private detective agency that solves the crimes no one else can.
—Kaycee Sloan, The Enquirer, 2 July 2025
The death of a guest jolts the wedding party and reawakens Stephanie’s dormant private detective career.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for private detective
Recent Examples of Synonyms for private detective
Noun
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Scott, McDonald and Neary were arrested, but Rackauckas and a Fullerton police detective persuaded Neary to testify against the other two men, according to the motion.—
Tony Saavedra,
Oc Register,
17 Sep. 2025
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Reigle and her team tested about a dozen formulations and viscosities, playing detective to figure out where a whole host of issues was coming from.—
Megan McIntyre,
Allure,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Boelter’s motivation remains unclear, but investigators found a one-and-a-half-page letter, described as rambling and difficult to read, that was ascribed to him.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
16 Sep. 2025
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One of the main enforcers of H-2A rules, the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division, last year had one of the lowest levels of investigators since the H-2A program was launched in the 1980s, Rutgers University researchers found.—
Max Blau,
ProPublica,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The film written by Ethan Coen and Tricia Cooke stars Margaret Qualley as a small-town private eye working a case of strange deaths at a mysterious church.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
24 Aug. 2025
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Short version: In this movie co-written and directed by Ethan Coen, Margaret Qualley plays a swaggering, small-town private eye whose investigations into a series of strange deaths lead her to a mysterious church run by a charismatic (and corrupt) preacher played by Chris Evans.—
Chris Foran,
jsonline.com,
20 Aug. 2025
Noun
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In September 2025, Cecilie Fjellhøy teamed up with private investigator Brianne Joseph to uncover other romance scams in Netflix's Love Con Revenge.—
Kelsie Gibson,
People.com,
10 Sep. 2025
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Catfish-style, Cecilie works with a private investigator, Brianne Joseph, to help uncover elaborate cons, support victims, and hold serial scammers accountable.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Private detective.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/private%20detective. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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