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Showing results for private detective. Search instead for meisterdetektive.
Definitions

private detective

NOUN
detective employed by private parties
Synonyms
STRONGEST
detective gumshoe private eye private investigator sleuth
WEAK
P.I. Sherlock Holmes beagle dick flatfoot inquiry agent inspector investigator operative private dick skip tracer sleuthhound spotter tec

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Claude, meanwhile, having left the police to become a private detective, is obsessed with solving a string of related wartime murders, including that of Huguette’s father.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 16, 2026

Three flavors of investigators combine here: the citizen detective, the private detective and the police detective.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 8, 2026

The move was recommended by the Daniel Morgan Independent Panel report, which looked at the force's handling of the unsolved murder of private detective Daniel Morgan.

From BBC • Sep. 29, 2025

This much I can tell you: Colin Farrell plays a private detective in “Sugar.”

From New York Times • Apr. 5, 2024

The cut-out, a private detective named Robert Maheu, made his way up to Rosselli’s suite at the Plaza and got right to the point.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin