private detective
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.
It is the first of five novels starring Neal Carey: “a graduate student who, much like me,” the author wrote, “was too busy making a living as a private detective to finish his degree.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 6, 2026
The move was recommended by the Daniel Morgan Independent Panel report, which looked at the force's handling of the unsolved murder of private detective Daniel Morgan.
From BBC • Sep. 29, 2025
After the alleged extortion started, Huang said, he hired an attorney and a private detective and began surreptitiously recording conversations with the defendants.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 7, 2024
Both articles were produced during a period when the newspaper has acknowledged paying the private detective explicitly to obtain material surreptitiously.
From New York Times • Jun. 15, 2024
In January 1919, after the police detained Middleton and his companion, the private detective interrogated them.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
