Thesaurus results for PRIVATE EYES

private eyes

noun

plural of private eye

as in detectives

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of private eyes The untitled half-hour project is a workplace comedy set in the world of private detectives, which continues the proud tradition of Los Angeles private eyes that began with Philip Marlowe and will end with this show. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 16 Mar. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for private eyes

Noun

Farinacci often spent days and even weeks scouting potential fire locations, monitoring weather and wildfire data, and planning to set multiple fires to stretch firefighting resources thin, according to detectives.

— Cindy Von Quednow, CNN Money, 10 Aug. 2026
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department detectives have launched an investigation after a man was found dead in Santa Clarita on Sunday morning.

— Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of detectives

Noun

But Davis’s book is part of a flurry of statements and interviews that, investigators say, taken together amount to an admission he was involved in the murder.

— Andy Rose, CNN Money, 10 Aug. 2026
The boyfriend of a 2-year-old boy's mother is facing felony charges after investigators accused him of hiding the child's body in the woods behind a Marietta apartment complex and lying to police.

— CBS News Atlanta Digital Team, CBS News, 9 Aug. 2026

Definition of investigators

Noun

Meanwhile, private detectives probed Hadley’s vulnerabilities as a witness.

— Heidi Blake, New Yorker, 8 June 2026
The trio took the stage at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles as part of a PaleyFest event commemorating five decades of Charlie's Angels, the groundbreaking ABC series that followed a group of female private detectives.

— Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Apr. 2026

Definition of private detectives

Noun

Harry and the six other high-profile claimants failed to prove their allegations that the publisher unlawfully obtained private information through methods including private investigators, deception, phone hacking and corrupt payments.

— Erin Hill, PEOPLE, 7 July 2026
Depending on the circumstances, this may include private investigators, attorneys, cybersecurity professionals, exchanges, regulators or law enforcement agencies.

— Jon Stojan June 23, Miami Herald, 23 June 2026