private detective

noun

Synonyms of private detectivenext
: private investigator

Synonyms of private detective

Relevance
See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of private detective in a Sentence

when the police insisted that it was an accident and not murder, she hired a private detective
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
In Spider-Noir, Nicolas Cage plays a down-on-his-luck private detective who used to be New York's only superhero. — Brittney Melton, NPR, 5 June 2026 Meanwhile, private detectives probed Hadley’s vulnerabilities as a witness. — Heidi Blake, New Yorker, 8 June 2026 William Hopper’s Paul Drake assisted as Mason’s go-to private detective with a knack for finding the evidence Mason and his clients needed. — Victoria Edel, PEOPLE, 16 June 2026 The book introduced readers to Easy Rawlins, a private detective in mid-20th-century Watts who would go on to figure into more than 15 novels (and counting). — Michael Schaub, Oc Register, 25 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for private detective

Word History

First Known Use

1861, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of private detective was in 1861

Rhymes for private detective

See All Rhymes for private detective

Browse Nearby Words

private corporation
private detective
private enterprise
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Private detective.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/private%20detective. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

private detective

noun
: private investigator

Legal Definition

private detective

noun
: private investigator
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 gambol

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
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
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All