noun
General Slang
gumshoe
· noun · police
A detective.
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Definitions
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A detective, especially a private one. Comes from the soft rubber-soled 'gum' shoes worn for sneaking around tailing suspects without a sound. The mac, the hat, the cigarette — that gumshoe.
“She hired some gumshoe to follow her husband for a week.”
by community
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gumshoe In A Sentence
She hired some gumshoe to follow her husband for a week.
Origin & Usage
Early 1900s US, from 'gum shoes' (rubber-soled shoes) that allowed detectives to walk silently.
Variants
gum-shoe
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