detect
verb (used with object)
to discover or catch (a person) in the performance of some act.
had detected
-
past perfectof detect.past perfect
Used to express a completed action that took place before another specific past action occurred.
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.
Researchers also told AFP they had detected false rumours on social networks that the border had been opened.
From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026
Hugging Face on July 16 announced that it had detected and contained the intrusion and reported it to law enforcement—five days before OpenAI announced it had connected the activity to its own internal testing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
In a February 2025 letter to state regulators, Edison said it had detected a single fault on a line more than five miles away from Altadena about 6:11 p.m. on the night the fire ignited.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2026
On Wednesday, US officials announced that Texas had detected its first case in 60 years in a three-week-old calf, with the larvae found in its umbilical area.
From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026
By the time Pomp had detected this piece of deception, five or six cows were missing, and his master so wroth that Pomp scarce knew what to do.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
