special agent
Americannoun
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an investigator in a law enforcement agency.
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an insurance sales representative.
Etymology
Origin of special agent
An Americanism dating back to 1830–40
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.
“They didn’t discriminate on who they hated,” Mark Remer, the FBI special agent in charge, told reporters last week.
From Slate ● May 26, 2026
"It's senseless. It's a video you can never unwatch," Micah McCombs, special agent in charge with Homeland Security Investigations, said during a news conference on Friday.
From BBC ● Apr. 10, 2026
Specifically, his proximity to Robert Ressler, a special agent said to have come up with the term “serial killers,” and who spent much of his career speaking with them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 2, 2026
Patel has shown up to events in hooded sweatshirts and sneakers and sometimes wears a badge despite not being a special agent.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 2, 2026
Becoming a special agent was his way of serving his country, he said.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
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.
