gumshoe C2+ Topic:General Vocabulary US /ˈɡʌmˌʃu/ UK /ˈɡʌmˌʃuː/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun a detective, especially a private investigator The hard-boiled gumshoe tailed the suspect through the rain-slicked streets. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · a detective, especially a... detectivesleuthinvestigatorsleuthhounddicktec Word family Forms gumshoeing Etymology AI details American English compound of gum + shoe, originally meaning a galosh or rubber-soled shoe; 'detective' sense from the idea of moving stealthily and silently as if in soft-soled shoes. Topics General Vocabulary External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # gumshoe **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈɡʌmˌʃu/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈɡʌmˌʃuː/ ## Meanings 1. a detective, especially a private investigator ## Examples - The hard-boiled gumshoe tailed the suspect through the rain-slicked streets. ## Synonyms - detective - sleuth - investigator - sleuthhound - dick - tec ## Etymology American English compound of gum + shoe, originally meaning a galosh or rubber-soled shoe; 'detective' sense from the idea of moving stealthily and silently as if in soft-soled shoes. ## AI Etymology Gumshoe has this etymological history: American English compound of gum + shoe, originally meaning a galosh or rubber-soled shoe; 'detective' sense from the idea of moving stealthily and silently as if in soft-soled shoes. As a noun, gumshoe names a detective, especially a private investigator. The analysis is partly morphological, with the modern form built from the elements named in the history. ## Topics - General Vocabulary markdown