house dick
noun
Simple meaning
A private detective use by a hotel or retail store.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
howsdikSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈhaʊsˈdɪk
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
slang
A private detective employed by a hotel or retail store
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
This meaning: A private detective employed by a hotel or retail store
Used this way, house dick is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It turns up most in everyday conversation and social media or informal writing contexts.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Very casual
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Playful
- Usage feel
- Playful and informal
Where it naturally appears
- Everyday conversation
- Social media/informal writing
Usage note
Slang: natural in speech and messages between friends, but out of place in school, work or published writing.
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
Share your sentence
Use This Word
See how this word sounds in a real sentence.
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Keep learning “house dick” by choosing the kind of practice you need next.
- Practice sentence writingWrite sentences with vocabulary and get instant feedback.
- Practice in contextAnswer short vocabulary questions drawn from real situations.
- Review vocabularyTest your recall and strengthen words over time.
- Practice typingType vocabulary in short rounds that draw from words you've learned and saved.
Want to type words like this one without looking at the keyboard? Each typing round draws from words you've learned, saved or need to review. Follow the free Learn to Type lessons and type your own vocabulary with confidence.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.