different between detective vs informer

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

Alternative forms

• informor (obsolete, rare)
• informour (obsolete, rare)

Etymology

inform +? -er

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -??(r)m?(r)

Noun

informer (plural informers)

1. One who informs someone else about something.
2. A person who tells authorities about improper or illegal activity.
3. One who informs, animates, or inspires.
   • 1729, Alexander Pope, Prologue to Sophonisba (by James Thomson

     Nature, informer of the poet's art.

Synonyms

• See Thesaurus:informant

Translations

See also

• name names

Anagrams

• reinform, reniform

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin ?nf?rm?, ?nf?rm?re.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??.f??.me/

Verb

informer

1. to inform; to enlighten; to impart knowledge (upon)

2. (reflexive) to inquire

Conjugation

Related terms

• information
• former

Further reading

• “informer” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Latin

Verb

?nf?rmer

1. first-person singular present passive subjunctive of ?nf?rm?

Norwegian Bokmål

Verb

informer

1. imperative of informere