detective

Meaning

Noun

1. A police officer tasked with collecting evidence and information in order to solve a crime; an investigator.
2. A person employed to find information not otherwise available to the public.

Adj

Employed in detecting.

Synonyms

investigator

spy

sleuth

tec

inspector

hawkshaw

gumshoe

secret agent

police detective

fink

inquirer

intelligence agent

op

plain-clothes man

policeman

👮‍♂️

police spy

privacy

private detective

private eye

probing

Richard

scout

secrecy

secret

㊙️

shamus

snoop

snooper

split

spook

trap

🪤

wiretapper

plainclothesman

plain-clothesman

secret policeman

cops-and-robbers

agent

private dick

beagle

bloodhound

dee

demon

dick

eavesdropper

examiner

eye

👁️

Translations

détective

🕵️

Detektiv

detective

🕵️

investigatore

🕵️

detetive

🕵️

detective

detectiu

🕵️

rechercheur

enquêteur

speurder

🕵️

detective

ντετέκτιβ

μυστικός πράκτορας

Privatdetektiv

Pronounced as (IPA)

/dɪˈtɛktɪv/

Etymology

The adjective is from Classical Latin dētēct-, past participial stem of dētegō (“to detect”), + -ive. The noun is an ellipsis of detective policeman, detective officer, or a similar construction.

Sentences

He also wrote a play and several detective novels .

I'm reading a fascinating detective story .

The detective untangles a web of robberies , lies and murder .

Kitano plays detective Azuma, a " Dirty Harry " -type who uses violent methods when confronting criminals .