private investigator
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of private investigator
First recorded in 1935–40
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.
A private investigator who was initially a key witness in a privacy case brought by several claimants against the publisher of the Daily Mail, including Prince Harry, has denied "switching sides" out of revenge.
From BBC • Mar. 23, 2026
Griffiths said her behaviour was proof she would "draw a line" between her professional and personal life, claiming she had never used a private investigator or hacked a phone.
From BBC • Mar. 10, 2026
Hartley said the internal inquiry was mainly relying on the spreadsheets of payments to Whittamore - which might have been inaccurate - not the notes of the private investigator himself.
From BBC • Feb. 12, 2026
In 1986, Don Winslow was a 33-year-old New York-born, world-traveling private investigator who, during stakeouts, read crime fiction by authors such as Elmore Leonard, James Ellroy and Joseph Wambaugh.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 6, 2026
“I even hired some local private investigator to find her, but no luck.”
From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
