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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of private detective
That is not a slight against Craig, whose ’90s-boy-band bangs and Foghorn Leghorn accent make private detective Benoit Blanc a delightful iconoclast.
—
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 12 Dec. 2025
Down Cemetery Road Cast Emma Thompson leads the cast as private detective Zoë Boehm.
—Griff Griffin, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Nov. 2025
And while the chemistry in the show — which followed a former model (Shepherd) and a detective (Bruce) who manage a private detective agency — was undeniable, a feud was seemingly brewing behind the scenes.
—Abby Stern, PEOPLE, 14 Oct. 2025
The movie follows the last human private detective in a futuristic world inhabited by humans and aliens.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 2 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for private detective
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 12 Dec. 2025
Down Cemetery Road Cast Emma Thompson leads the cast as private detective Zoë Boehm.
—Griff Griffin, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Nov. 2025
And while the chemistry in the show — which followed a former model (Shepherd) and a detective (Bruce) who manage a private detective agency — was undeniable, a feud was seemingly brewing behind the scenes.
—Abby Stern, PEOPLE, 14 Oct. 2025
The movie follows the last human private detective in a futuristic world inhabited by humans and aliens.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 2 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for private detective
Recent Examples of Synonyms for private detective
Noun
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Late on December 22, for example, mere hours after the shooting, detectives visited Barry and James, both of them still in the ER with conditions listed as critical, to record their official statements.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
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Sheldon Williams was a city paramedic in the 1990s and also served as a police detective for 14 years and had been teaching recently at Pitt's emergency medicine program as well as consulting for the Department of Homeland Security and with FEMA.—
Chilekasi Adele,
CBS News,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Applegate said investigators later found Facebook Messenger data showing the suspects discussing the plan.—
City News Service,
Oc Register,
25 Jan. 2026
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Later, sources told CNN the Justice Department stopped investigating the agent and federal authorities refused to share information with local investigators.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
25 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Princess Lilibet and her brother, Prince Archie, 6, are often kept out of the private eye by their parents, but the siblings have recently been featured in a number of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's photos — and some of their philanthropic work.—
Charlotte Phillipp,
PEOPLE,
17 Jan. 2026
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On Friday, the network added a comedy, a private eye show from Brooklyn Nine-Nine alumni Dan Goor and Luke Del Tredici.—
Rick Porter,
HollywoodReporter,
16 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Her family in 2018 also engaged in a legal battle with OPD in order to access records that their private investigators could use in a search.—
Silas Morgan,
The Orlando Sentinel,
24 Jan. 2026
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The film is billed as a comedy following a wayward private investigator and a volatile ex-model who are pulled into a murder investigation during the chaos of Miami Swim Week.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
22 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Private detective.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/private%20detective. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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