detective
Clue-following sleuth
A detective is someone who investigates crimes or gathers information, either as a police officer or a private investigator.
The word also works as an adjective: detective work, detective fiction.
Detectives in stories—from Sherlock Holmes to film noir gumshoes—have made the role iconic.
The detective examined the crime scene for evidence.
Crime fiction identifying perpetrator
- mysterySomething unexplained or unknown
- thrillerSuspense-driven narrative genre
- suspenseAnxious uncertainty about outcomes
- red herringIntentional misleading distraction
plot twist · cozy mystery · locked room · hardboiled · police procedural · gumshoe · magnifying glass · trench coat
Hints toward answers
- evidenceFacts supporting truth
- caseContainer or instance
- suspectBelieve to be likely
- witnessOne who attests
interrogation · surveillance · stakeout · undercover · informant · leads · interview · questioning
Treacherous enchantress
- shadowyObscured by darkness
- cynicalDoubting human goodness
- smokyFilled with combustion haze
- alleywayNarrow urban passage
underworld · neon · jazz · whiskey · nightclub · gritty · corruption · double cross
Drawing logical conclusions
- logicScience of valid reasoning
- deductionConclusion from premises
- inferenceConclusion reached through reasoning
- analysisMethodical study of parts
observation · hypothesis · pattern · puzzle · profiling · conjecture · intuition · hunch
Deliberate unlawful killing
- homicideCausing another's death
- theftUnlawful taking of property
- robberyTheft through intimidation
- burglaryIllegal entry to commit crime
fraud · kidnapping · blackmail · embezzlement · arson · assault · forgery · smuggling
Iconic Victorian-era investigator
- HolmesFictional London investigator
- WatsonCommon English surname
- PoirotFictional Belgian detective
- SpadeFictional sleuth's surname
Marlowe · Columbo · Morse · Pinkerton · Nancy Drew · Monk · Magnum · Rockford
Ridge patterns identifying individuals
- footprintsMarks left by walking
- DNAHereditary code molecule
- bloodstainDried blood residue
- fiberPlant-based digestive aid
ballistics · autopsy · trace · weapon · ransom note · cipher · disguise · photograph
whodunit
Crime fiction identifying perpetrator
- mysterySomething unexplained or unknown
- thrillerSuspense-driven narrative genre
- suspenseAnxious uncertainty about outcomes
red herring · plot twist · cozy mystery · locked room · hardboiled · police procedural · gumshoe · magnifying glass · trench coat · fedora
clues
Hints toward answers
witness · interrogation · surveillance · stakeout · undercover · informant · leads · interview · questioning · inquiry
femme fatale
Treacherous enchantress
alleyway · underworld · neon · jazz · whiskey · nightclub · gritty · corruption · double cross · pistol
reasoning
Drawing logical conclusions
- logicScience of valid reasoning
- deductionConclusion from premises
- inferenceConclusion reached through reasoning
analysis · observation · hypothesis · pattern · puzzle · profiling · conjecture · intuition · hunch · conclusion
murder
Deliberate unlawful killing
burglary · fraud · kidnapping · blackmail · embezzlement · arson · assault · forgery · smuggling · conspiracy
Sherlock
Iconic Victorian-era investigator
Marlowe · Spade · Columbo · Morse · Pinkerton · Nancy Drew · Monk · Magnum · Rockford
fingerprints
Ridge patterns identifying individuals
- footprintsMarks left by walking
- DNAHereditary code molecule
- bloodstainDried blood residue
fiber · ballistics · autopsy · trace · weapon · ransom note · cipher · disguise · photograph · document
- genresaction, comedy, fantasy, horror, documentary
- jobsdoctor, administrator, lawyer, teacher, nurse
- crime fictionmurder mystery, whodunit, crime novel, mystery novels, crime stories
- crime investigationwhodunit, investigation, investigator, smoking gun, clue
- Criminal Investigationcrime scene, crime investigation, forensics, investigator, evidence collection
- mysteryclue, suspect, clues, sleuth, whodunit
detectivecriminal
Person who breaks laws
perpetrator · suspect · culprit · offender · fugitive
detectivepatrol officer
Uniformed law enforcer
beat cop · patrolman · traffic cop · rookie cop · constable
- private detectiveLicensed investigator for hire
- detective workSystematic inquiry into mysteries
- detective storyNarrative featuring investigation
- detective novelFiction solving a crime
- detective storiesCrime-solving fiction genre
- early detectionFinding something at onset
detection, detecting, detectives, detective's, detective work, detective fiction