Bow Street runner

British

/ bəʊ /

noun

(in Britain from 1749 to 1829) an officer at Bow Street magistrates' court, London, whose duty was to pursue and arrest criminals

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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.

Could it be the Bow Street runner, or Screw?

From A Rogue's Life by Collins, Wilkie

It was the name of the celebrated Bow Street runner, as given in the London Gazette.

From The Wayfarers by Snaith, J. C.

No chance of giving any one the slip in that direction; and no sign, either, of the Bow Street runner.

From A Rogue's Life by Collins, Wilkie

Could he find no other he would apply for employment as a Bow Street runner, serve for a year to find out their methods, and acquaint himself with the places where criminals were harbored.

From Colonel Thorndyke's Secret by Henty, G. A. (George Alfred)

The Bow Street runner was less amenable to discipline.

From Starvecrow Farm by Weyman, Stanley J.

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023