sherlock

or Sher·lock

[ shur-lok ]

/ ˈʃɜr lɒk /

noun Informal.

a private detective.

a person remarkably adept at solving mysteries, especially by using insight and logical deduction: Who's the sherlock who can tell me where my pen is?

Origin of sherlock

after Sherlock Holmes, fictitious detective created by Arthur Conan Doyle

Definition for sherlock (2 of 2)

Sherlock

[ shur-lok ]

/ ˈʃɜr lɒk /

noun

a male given name: from an Old English word meaning “fair-haired.”

Examples from the Web for sherlock

Sherlock Holmes is a new millennium sex symbol with books, movies, and TV episodes introducing him to a new generation of fans.
Can Tarzan of the Apes Survive in a Post-Colonial World?|Ted Gioia|November 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Of course, you could protest that Sherlock did not really exist and the Ripper did.
Sherlock Holmes Vs. Jack the Ripper|Clive Irving|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
LONDON — If Sherlock Holmes was such a smart detective, why was he not put on the case of Jack the Ripper?
Sherlock Holmes Vs. Jack the Ripper|Clive Irving|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He is a pudgy, bespectacled, homburg-wearing cuckold of a Sherlock in those fish-grey postwar years of 1970s England.
Iran’s Top Spy Is the Modern-Day Karla, John Le Carré’s Villainous Mastermind|Michael Weiss|July 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Conan Doyle eventually left medicine and created Sherlock Holmes, a character who brought science to the masses.
Following Tuberculosis From Death Sentence to Cure|Tessa Miller|April 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
"Sherlock Holmes" proved to be another "Secret Service" in every way.
Charles Frohman: Manager and Man|Isaac Frederick Marcosson and Daniel Frohman
It wouldn't take a Sherlock Holmes to discover that I had the camera craze, would it?
Said the Observer|Louis J. Stellman
He smiled, and determined to take a rise out of "Sherlock," as Bates had christened the policeman.
The Postmaster's Daughter|Louis Tracy
Just before nine oclock Sherlock Holmes stepped briskly into the room.
Adventures of Sherlock Holmes|A. Conan Doyle
Suppose someone had come to Sherlock Holmes and said, 'Mr. Holmes, here's a case for you.
My Man Jeeves|P. G. Wodehouse

Word Origin and History for sherlock

Sherlock

masc. proper name, literally "fair-haired," from Old English scir "bright" + locc "lock of hair." Slang for "private detective, perceptive person" (the latter often ironic) is attested from 1903, from A.C. Doyle's fictional character Sherlock Holmes (full name in this sense used from 1896; Holmes debuted in 1887 and was popular by 1892).

sherlock

or Sher·lock

noun Informal.

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Origin of sherlock

Definition for sherlock (2 of 2)

Sherlock

noun

Examples from the Web for sherlock

Word Origin and History for sherlock

Sherlock