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  • sherlock
    sherlock
    noun
    a private detective.
  • Sherlock
    Sherlock
    noun
    a male given name: from an Old English word meaning “fair-haired.”

sherlock

1 American  
[shur-lok] / ˈʃɜr lɒk /
Or Sherlock

noun

Informal.
  1. a private detective.

  2. 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?


Sherlock 2 American  
[shur-lok] / ˈʃɜr lɒk /

noun

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


Etymology

Origin of sherlock

After Sherlock Holmes, fictitious detective created by Arthur Conan Doyle


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:

Topics: , sherlock, BBC, Greece, Memory Techniques, , This article originally appeared on .

From Salon ● Feb. 9, 2014

But if the plainclothes nose around, are they going to sherlock the parish priest and the town bughunter?

From Slippy McGee, Sometimes Known as the Butterfly Man by Marie Conway Oemler

He is excellent on the genesis of the Sherlock Holmes stories and the emergence of the journals that sprang up in the 1890s to accommodate them, such as the Strand Magazine.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

Sherlock Xia of law firm Yenlex said that China's move had sent a "clear signal" that attempting to shed Chinese identity through overseas relocation was no longer viable.

From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026

She has an eye for detail; later in the series, she will Sherlock Holmes a character based on his clothing.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026

The third film takes Enola, the teenage sister of Sherlock Holmes, to Malta, where her future with Tewkesbury is interrupted by a dangerous new case involving Sherlock's disappearance.

From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026

"You found some awesome clues. And I think we found the person who knocked down Sherlock!"

From "Case of the Sneaky Snowman: Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew, #5" by Carolyn Keene

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