different between detective vs constable

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d??t?kt?v/
• Rhymes: -?kt?v

Noun

detective (plural detectives)

1. (law enforcement) A police officer who looks for evidence as part of solving a crime; an investigator.
2. A person employed to find information not otherwise available to the public.

Synonyms

• (law enforcement): DT (abbreviation), Det (abbreviation)
• (person employed to find information): private detective, private investigator
• (person employed to find information): (slang) dick, private dick
• sleuth

Derived terms

Related terms

Descendants

Translations

Adjective

detective (not comparable)

1. Employed in detecting.

Asturian

Noun

detective m or f (plural detectives)

1. detective

Galician

Noun

detective m (plural detectives)

1. detective

Further reading

• “detective” in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega, Royal Galician Academy.

Portuguese

Noun

detective m (plural detectives)

1. Alternative form of detetive

Spanish

Etymology

From English detective.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /dete??tibe/, [d?e.t?e???t?i.??e]

Noun

detective m or f (plural detectives)

1. detective

Usage notes

• detective may be masculine or feminine, but the less common detectiva exists for female detectives as well.

Derived terms

• detective privado
• detectivesco

Further reading

• “detective” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.

English

Etymology

From Middle English constable, cunstable, constabil, connestable, cunestable, from Old French conestable, from Latin comes stabul? (“officer of the stables”). For the sense-development, compare marshal.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?k?nst?b?l/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?k?nst?b?l/
• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /?k?nst?b?l/

Noun

constable (plural constables)

1. One holding the lowest rank in most Commonwealth police forces. (See also chief constable.)
2. (Britain, law) A police officer or an officer with equivalent powers.
3. (historical) An officer of a noble court in the Middle Ages, usually a senior army commander. (See also marshal).
4. The warden of a castle.
5. (US) A public officer, usually at municipal level, responsible for maintaining order or serving writs and court orders.
6. (Channel Islands) An elected head of a parish (also known as a connétable)
7. A large butterfly, Dichorragia nesimachus, family Nymphalidae, of Asia.

Synonyms

• See Thesaurus:police officer

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

constable (third-person singular simple present constables, present participle constabling, simple past and past participle constabled)

1. (intransitive, dated) To act as a constable or policeman.

Anagrams

• balconets