manhunter
Hunts wanted people
A manhunter is someone who hunts people—whether a law enforcement officer tracking a fugitive, a bounty hunter pursuing a bail-jumper, or historically, someone who captured escaped slaves or tracked criminals for reward.
The term emphasizes relentless, often dangerous pursuit: The FBI deployed their best manhunters to find the escaped convict.
In fiction, manhunter evokes a skilled, methodical tracker.
Rapid following of quarry
- trackingMonitoring location over time
- fugitiveOne fleeing authorities
- captureTake into custody
- trailPath through wilderness
quarry · search · stakeout · surveillance · hound · shadow · tail · follow
Formal examination of facts
- cluesHints toward answers
- forensicsScientific crime-scene analysis
- profilerBehavioral pattern analyst
- evidenceFacts supporting truth
deduction · interrogation · motive · witness · alibi · sleuth · inspector · testimony
Arrange in proper order
- bountyReward for capture
- sheriffCounty's chief officer
- deputyAuthorized substitute or assistant
- badgeWorn symbol of membership
FBI · arrest · warrant · fugitive · extradition · jurisdiction · task force · SWAT
Anxious uncertainty about outcomes
- serial killerRecurring lone murderer
- psychopathPerson without conscience
- FBI agentFederal law enforcement officer
- cat-and-mouseProlonged strategic pursuit
hostage · conspiracy · tension · mystery · undercover · profile · hideout · pursuit
Uncultivated, uninhabited natural region
- trailPath through wilderness
- spoorAnimal's passage evidence
- footprintsMarks left by walking
- trackingMonitoring location over time
scout · terrain · woodsman · survivalist · pathfinder · outdoorsman · camouflage · navigation
chase
Rapid following of quarry
trail · quarry · search · stakeout · surveillance · hound · shadow · tail · follow · seek
investigation
Formal examination of facts
evidence · deduction · interrogation · motive · witness · alibi · sleuth · inspector · testimony · CSI
marshal
Arrange in proper order
badge · FBI · arrest · warrant · fugitive · extradition · jurisdiction · task force · SWAT · tactical
suspense
Anxious uncertainty about outcomes
- serial killerRecurring lone murderer
- psychopathPerson without conscience
- FBI agentFederal law enforcement officer
cat-and-mouse · hostage · conspiracy · tension · mystery · undercover · profile · hideout · pursuit · Hannibal
wilderness
Uncultivated, uninhabited natural region
- trailPath through wilderness
- spoorAnimal's passage evidence
- footprintsMarks left by walking
tracking · scout · terrain · woodsman · survivalist · pathfinder · outdoorsman · camouflage · navigation · bush
- chasepursuer, chaser, tracker, seeker, hot pursuit
- bounty huntingfugitive, capture, bail bond, bail bondsman, skip tracer
- working animalsherding, gun dog, guarding, pulling, guard dog