DETECTION, noun The act of detecting; discovery of a person or thing attempted to be concealed; as the detection of a thief or burglarian; the detection of fraud or forgery; the detection of artifice, device or a plot. 2. Discovery of any thing before hidden, or unknown. The sea and rivers are instrumental to the detection of amber and other fossils, by washing away the earth that concealed them.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI