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
On one level, Resuscitation of a Hanged Man is a private eye novel.
—
Dwyer Murphy
june 24, Literary Hub, 24 June 2025
The dark comedy reaches its Season 1 conclusion Friday on NBC and it’s poised to bring a new set of twists and cliffhangers as the group tries to evade law enforcement and a private eye plotting blackmail.
—Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 16 May 2025
The track ended the contract after only a few months of effort by the private eyes.
—Katie Bo Lillis, CNN Money, 2 May 2025
Levitt stars in Killer Heat as Nick Bali, a private eye who travels to the Greek island of Crete to investigate the death of shipping magnate Leo Vardakis (Richard Madden), who plunged to his death during a free solo rock climb.
—Tim Lammers, Forbes, 26 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for private eye
Dwyer Murphy
june 24, Literary Hub, 24 June 2025
The dark comedy reaches its Season 1 conclusion Friday on NBC and it’s poised to bring a new set of twists and cliffhangers as the group tries to evade law enforcement and a private eye plotting blackmail.
—Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 16 May 2025
The track ended the contract after only a few months of effort by the private eyes.
—Katie Bo Lillis, CNN Money, 2 May 2025
Levitt stars in Killer Heat as Nick Bali, a private eye who travels to the Greek island of Crete to investigate the death of shipping magnate Leo Vardakis (Richard Madden), who plunged to his death during a free solo rock climb.
—Tim Lammers, Forbes, 26 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for private eye
Recent Examples of Synonyms for private eye
Noun
-
The second season is set to bow next year with Hodge set to return as the iconic detective.—
Justin Kroll,
Deadline,
30 Sep. 2025
-
During his confession, Jones said the Nestors hired him to clean around their business — and told detectives what led up to the killings.—
Grethel Aguila,
Miami Herald,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Hamilton County Coroner's Office investigators are looking for relatives or friends of a West End woman who died recently.—
Enquirer staff,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
30 Sep. 2025
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In mid-2020, investigators had a major breakthrough.—
T. Christian Miller,
ProPublica,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The movie follows the last human private detective in a futuristic world inhabited by humans and aliens.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
2 Oct. 2025
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The hotel is chasing him for his bill, and a private detective (Tilda Swinton) is chasing him for stealing money from a wealthy old woman.—
Anne Thompson,
IndieWire,
30 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Based on the book by Slow Horses scribe Mick Herron, in Down Cemetery Road, when a house explodes in a quiet Oxford suburb and a girl disappears in the aftermath, neighbor Sarah Trafford (Wilson) becomes obsessed with finding her and enlists the help of private investigator Zoë Boehm (Thompson).—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
29 Sep. 2025
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The network has given a series order to RJ Decker (a working title), starring Scott Speedman as a South Florida private investigator.—
Rick Porter,
HollywoodReporter,
29 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Private eye.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/private%20eye. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
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