gumshoeing
Doing detective work
Gumshoeing is detective work, especially the unglamorous kind involving surveillance, following leads, and pounding the pavement.
The term comes from gumshoe, slang for a detective or private investigator, itself derived from the soft-soled rubber shoes that allowed one to move quietly.
After weeks of gumshoeing, he finally tracked down the missing witness.
The word suggests persistent, methodical investigation rather than dramatic crime-solving.
Prolonged covert observation
- tailRear animal appendage
- shadowLight blocked by object
- followGo behind another
- wiretapHidden listening device
bugging · eavesdrop · observe · watch · monitor · undercover · reconnaissance · infiltrate
Tough, cynical fiction style
- shadowyObscured by darkness
- smokyFilled with combustion haze
- grittyCoarse or courageous
- trenchcoatBelted, knee-length raincoat
fedora · alleyway · underworld · pulp · cynical · seedy · whiskey · cigarette
stakeout
Prolonged covert observation
wiretap · bugging · eavesdrop · observe · watch · monitor · undercover · reconnaissance · infiltrate · informant
hardboiled
Tough, cynical fiction style
trenchcoat · fedora · alleyway · underworld · pulp · cynical · seedy · whiskey · cigarette · voiceover
clue
Solving aid
- leadDense metal, symbol Pb
- evidenceFacts supporting truth
- interrogateQuestion formally and persistently
question · probe · examine · interview · deduce · uncover · case · suspect · alibi · witness
whodunit
Crime fiction identifying perpetrator
Marlowe · suspense · thriller · procedural
gumshoeingdesk work
Sedentary office labor
waiting · idling · sitting tight · office work · theorizing
gumshoeingignoring
Deliberately not noticing
overlooking · neglecting · turning a blind eye · disregarding · inaction