shamus
Americannoun
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shamuses
plural
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a detective.
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a police officer.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of shamus
1925–30; of obscure origin, though popularly derived from either Yiddish shames shammes or the Irish male given name Séamas
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.
See Examples For:
Dashiell Hammett’s detective Sam Spade did his shamus business in the fogs of San Francisco, but Raymond Chandler’s Philip Marlowe made L.A. the noir capital.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 18, 2022
It doesn’t take much to lure the old shamus out of a seclusion, which he isn’t much enjoying anyhow.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2018
For the audience, he is equally shamus and shaman, chasing down clues and trying to exorcise demons that plague the body politic.
From New York Times ● Dec. 14, 2017
In Paul Thomas Anderson’s cinematic love-in “Inherent Vice,” Joaquin Phoenix plays Doc Sportello, a Los Angeles shamus in Jesus sandals trucking through the sunshine and noir like a stoner Philip Marlowe.
From New York Times ● Dec. 11, 2014
I've got friends in PIB—real friends, not the shamus crowd you're acquainted with that'll take you for your last nickel and then leave you to starve.
From Bear Trap by Alan Edward Nourse
Philip Marlowe at quarterback, Easy Rawlins at strong safety, and a fierce defensive line of framed shamuses.
From New York Times ● Jul. 17, 2020
Lionel is one of a handful of shamuses — Bobby Cannavale, Ethan Suplee and Dallas Roberts play the others — known as Minna’s men.
From New York Times ● Oct. 31, 2019
Since his death, several of the shamuses in his earlier stories have been renamed Philip Marlowe, a nod to the primacy and enduring power of that character.
From New York Times ● Dec. 21, 2014
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