English
Pronunciation
italbrac|RP IPA|/slu�θ/, SAMPA|/slu:T/
rhymes|u�θ
Etymology 1
From ON. slóð (Norwegian slod).
Noun
en-noun
- obsolete An animal's trail or track.
- archaic A sleuth-hound; a bloodhound.
- A detective.
#* 1908, w:Edith Van Dyne|Edith Van Dyne (Frank L. Baum), Aunt Jane�s Nieces at Millville
#*: Do ye want me to become a sleuth, or engage detectives to track the objects of your erroneous philanthropy?
Synonyms
detective
Translations
trans-top|detective
Dutch: t|nl|speurder|m, t|nl|speurneus|m, t-|nl|detective|m, t|nl|detectief|m italbrac|informal
trans-mid
trans-bottom
Verb
en-verb
- intransitive To act as a detective; to try to discover who committed a crime.
#* 1922, w:Agatha Christie|Agatha Christie, The Secret Adversary
#*: We must discover where he lives, what he does � sleuth him, in fact!
Synonyms
shadow
Translations
trans-top|detective
Dutch: t|nl|naspeuren, t|nl|schaduwen
trans-mid
trans-bottom
Etymology 2
OE. slæwþ|slǣwþ, corresponding to slow + -th.
Noun
en-noun
- context|obsolete|uncountable slowness|Slowness; laziness, sloth.
- rare A collective term for a group of bears.
#* 2007, Elinor De Wire, The Lightkeepers' Menagerie: Stories of Animals at Lighthouses - Page 200
#*: From the darkness came the howls of routs of wolves and bands of coyotes, the rumbling growls of a sleuth of bears or the bugles of a gang of elk.
#* 1995, Bobbie Ann Mason, The Girl Sleuth - Page 13
#*: If these dainty adventurers weren't being chased by a sleuth of bears or bogeys, they were being captured by Gypsies or thieves.
#* 1961, Noel Perrin, A Passport Secretly Green - Page 89''
#*: As quietly as if I were practicing to join a sleuth of bears, I crept out the door and went on home, eventually winding up in the garage...
Synonyms
italbrac|sloth: idleness, inertia, laziness, lethargy, sloth, slothfulness
italbrac|collective term for a group of bears: sloth
See also
Appendix:Animals
Category:English collective nouns
io:sleuth
ru:sleuth
vi:sleuth
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