as in detective
a person not on the police force who investigates criminal or illicit activity or searches for missing persons
the firm hired a hawkshaw to find out who was fencing stock from their warehouse
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hawkshaw
Noun
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My dad, a police detective, made sure the Klansman saw his service revolver on his waist.
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Police ask any witnesses who were not contacted by authorities at the scene to contact detectives at (805) 654-9511.
Noun
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Hinds County’s chief death investigator, Jeramiah Howard, attributed her death to the heat.
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Carla Walker cold case The 1974 murder of 17-year-old Carla Walker in Fort Worth, Texas, went unsolved for more than four decades before advanced DNA testing helped investigators identify her killer.
Noun
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In Metropia, a gigantic city in an alternate future as seen from 1939, private eye Raymond Gunn is drawn into a case involving aliens, murder and a multimedia star named Venus Nova.
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Set in Metropia, a gigantic city in an alternate future inhabited by aliens and humans as seen from a 1939 perspective, the film revolves around private eye Raymond Gunn (Rockwell) who is drawn into a case involving murder and a multimedia star named Venus Nova, voiced by Scarlett Johansson.
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Cite this Entry
“Hawkshaw.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hawkshaw. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.
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