as in detective
a person not on the police force who investigates criminal or illicit activity or searches for missing persons
the popular TV sleuth lives a much more action-packed life than do his real-world counterparts
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sleuth
Online sleuths have spent the past year examining photos from Combs’s Labor Day bashes and other lavish events with the same intensity applied to Jeffrey Epstein’s plane logs.
—
Kyndall Cunningham, Vox, 12 May 2025
Chen – a pseudonym to protect his real identity – is part of a team of internet sleuths whose mission is to shut down a shadowy global network that mutilates and kills cats for profit.
—Rebecca Wright, CNN Money, 30 May 2025
But the pleasure of extra time spent around this group of improbably brilliant, low-fi sleuths — Rose busts out a magnifying glass at one point, while Hardy is fond of quoting 1930s armchair detective hero Nero Wolfe — more than justifies any unnecessary twists to the main story.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 29 May 2025
On Wednesday June 5, cameras will begin rolling on Private Eyes West Coast, the light crime drama for Global that reunites Priestley and Sampson as quick-witted sleuths Matt Shade and Angie Everett from the original Private Eyes in a new Canadian West Coast location.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 29 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for sleuth
Kyndall Cunningham, Vox, 12 May 2025
Chen – a pseudonym to protect his real identity – is part of a team of internet sleuths whose mission is to shut down a shadowy global network that mutilates and kills cats for profit.
—Rebecca Wright, CNN Money, 30 May 2025
But the pleasure of extra time spent around this group of improbably brilliant, low-fi sleuths — Rose busts out a magnifying glass at one point, while Hardy is fond of quoting 1930s armchair detective hero Nero Wolfe — more than justifies any unnecessary twists to the main story.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 29 May 2025
On Wednesday June 5, cameras will begin rolling on Private Eyes West Coast, the light crime drama for Global that reunites Priestley and Sampson as quick-witted sleuths Matt Shade and Angie Everett from the original Private Eyes in a new Canadian West Coast location.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 29 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for sleuth
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sleuth
Noun
-
No arrests had been made as an investigation by Calumet Area detectives was underway.—
Tess Kenny,
Chicago Tribune,
26 June 2025
-
Based on a preliminary investigation, detectives believe other women also may have been assaulted by Palacios, police said.—
Don Sweeney,
Sacbee.com,
25 June 2025
Noun
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Few people, other than the investigators, had been inside the Pulse building before this past week.—
Skyler Swisher,
The Orlando Sentinel,
17 June 2025
-
Middle Street and Lake Avenue were closed for several hours while investigators were at the scene.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
17 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sleuth.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sleuth. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
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