Meaning & use
detective
A person, often a police officer, whose job is to investigate crimes and gather evidence.
See it in a sentence
The detective questioned three witnesses before identifying a suspect.
She grew up reading detective novels and dreamed of solving mysteries herself.
A note on using this word
Detective can describe a police rank as well as a general profession, and private detective refers to one hired independently rather than by the police.
Words with a similar meaning
investigatorsleuth
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
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