private investigator
Americannoun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
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.
To the side stood private investigator Carmelo Castañeda.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 17, 2026
Our everyman is Ben Reilly — played by the incomparable Nicolas Cage, making his live-action television debut — a private investigator who moonlights as the city’s only superhero, the Spider.
From Los Angeles Times • May 13, 2026
David Sherborne, for the claimants, repeatedly questioned the private investigator about the statement on Monday - having been given permission by the judge to treat him as a hostile witness and conduct a cross-examination.
From BBC • Mar. 23, 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
Don your detective cap and become your own private investigator!
From "The Science of Breakable Things" by Tae Keller
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.
