shamuses

noun

plural of shamus, slang
1
as in policemen
a member of a force charged with law enforcement at the local level a hard-bitten L.A. shamus who, when he's not battling crooks, is locking horns with his superiors

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in detectives
a person not on the police force who investigates criminal or illicit activity or searches for missing persons he's a shamus who mostly finds evidence to use in divorce cases

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for shamuses
  1. policemen
  2. detectives
  3. officers
  4. investigators
  5. cops
  6. private detectives
  7. constables
  8. private investigators
Noun
  • The head-on crash that killed two policemen and five joyriders in Middlesbrough in August, and its aftermath, is the latest.
    — The Week UK, TheWeek, 5 Sep. 2026
  • As a result, the policemen were tried for a second time, in which one officer was found not guilty, and the two others’ charges were ultimately dismissed due to a second hung jury and mistrial.
    — Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of policemen
Noun
  • Back at his Brickell apartment, detectives searched the unit after a judge signed off on a warrant.
    — Milena Malaver, Miami Herald, 5 Sep. 2026
  • About a month after Craig’s death, police homicide detectives released security camera video of a suspect in the Oak Park fatal shooting.
    — Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of detectives
Noun
  • The Washington Post reported last month that authorities have charged or accused at least 50 law enforcement officers of leveraging ALPRs without authorization, sometimes using the software to stalk women.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 7 Sep. 2026
  • Among them is a complaint by four Muslim women in Arizona who sued multiple police departments and Arizona State University after male officers removed their hijabs while arresting them at pro-Palestinian campus protests in 2024.
    — BrieAnna J. Frank, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of officers
Noun
  • Greg Baker Early on, investigators and the family believed Erica had been abducted.
    — Yana Johnson, NBC news, 6 Sep. 2026
  • The page says the funds will be used only for legal expenses, including filings, transcripts, investigators and experts.
    — Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of investigators
Noun
  • Th victim made contact with the bus and was struck, cops said.
    — Rebecca White, New York Daily News, 6 Sep. 2026
  • Employees at an O’Reilly Auto Parts in Tucson called the cops on Myers in May 2024.
    — Taylor Seely, AZCentral.com, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of cops
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
  • The woman was able to flee the scene and located deputy constables.
    — Adam England, PEOPLE, 15 July 2026
  • Troopers and Beacon Falls constables responded to the home and detained Drozdowski, state police said.
    — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 6 May 2026
Definition of constables
Noun
  • In an interview with a neighbor, the private investigators learned that there was a cargo van outside the house at the time.
    — Jeremy Greenberg, ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Priestley and Sampson are reprising their roles as private investigators Matt Shade and Angie Everett.
    — Erik Pedersen, Deadline, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of private investigators
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.

Browse Nearby Words

shamus
shamuses
shanghai
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Shamuses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shamuses. Accessed 9 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of stigma

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All