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Detection vs Plainclothes - What's the difference?

detection | plainclothes |

As nouns the difference between detection and plainclothes

is that detection is the act of detecting or sensing something; discovering something that was hidden or disguised while plainclothes is ordinary civilian clothes, rather than uniform.

As an adjective plainclothes is

(usually|of a police officer) wearing ordinary civilian clothes instead of a uniform, in order to avoid detection.

detection

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • The act of detecting or sensing something; discovering something that was hidden or disguised.
  • *
  • , title=(The Celebrity), chapter=1 , passage=In the old days, to my commonplace and unobserving mind, he gave no evidences of genius whatsoever. He never read me any of his manuscripts, […], and therefore my lack of detection of his promise may in some degree be pardoned.}}
  • * {{quote-book, year=1931, author=
  • , title=Death Walks in Eastrepps , chapter=10/6 citation , passage=“Why should Eldridge commit murder?
  • The finding out of a constituent, a signal, an agent or the like, mostly by means of a specific device or method.
  • plainclothes

    English

    Adjective

    (-)
  • (usually, of a police officer) Wearing ordinary civilian clothes instead of a uniform, in order to avoid detection.
  • Noun

    (-)
  • Ordinary civilian clothes, rather than uniform.
  • Synonyms

    * mufti (UK)