Cops
Private detectives and cops are semantically related. In some cases you can use "Private detectives" instead a noun "Cops".
Private detectives
Cops and private detectives are semantically related. Sometimes you can use "Cops" instead a noun phrase "Private detectives".
Mutual synonyms
Both terms in one sentence
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Professional cops and private detectives are a no-no, as the hero of a cozy must be a good-hearted everyman (or everywoman) with a down-to-earth hobby or occupation, like a chef or a librarian.
Source: Sugar Wiki / Sweet Dreams Fuel -
In homage to the frequency with which private detectives (like Philip Marlowe) get beaten up by corrupt cops or gangsters, P.N.
Source: Good Thing You Can Heal - In Real Life, cops get called on Private Detectives all the time, as this Cracked article describes.
Source: Calling the Cops on the FBI
Cite this Source
Private detectives and Cops. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 02, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/cops/private_detectives
Cops & Private detectives. N.p., 2016. Web. 02 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/cops/private_detectives>.
Private detectives or Cops. 2016. Accessed August 02, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/cops/private_detectives.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "cops" and "private detectives" have occurred on timeline