The act of working as a detective or secret agent; sneaking around to gather information or investigate something.
From 'gumshoe' plus the gerund suffix '-ing'. The term describes the ongoing or habitual action of performing detective or surveillance work.
Gumshoeing captures a whole genre of 1920s-40s noir detective fiction—it's wonderfully specific slang that evokes quiet footsteps, shadowy alleys, and the gumshoe's trademark fedora and rubber-soled shoes creeping through the night.
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