plural ghosts
1
: the seat of life or intelligence : soul
give up the ghost
2
: a disembodied soul
especially
: the soul of a dead person believed to be an inhabitant of the unseen world or to appear to the living in bodily likeness
4
a
: a faint shadowy trace
a ghost of a smile
b
: the least bit
not a ghost of a chance
5
: a false image in a photographic negative or on a television screen caused especially by reflection
6
: one who ghostwrites
7
: a red blood cell that has lost its hemoglobin
ghosted; ghosting; ghosts
1
: to haunt like a ghost
2
: ghostwrite
ghosted the mayor's autobiography
3
informal
: to cut off all contact with (someone) abruptly and usually without explanation : to subject (someone, such as a former romantic partner) to ghosting (see ghosting sense 2)
No one wants to be ghosted, mostly because it sucks to admit that the person you gushed about last week is now pretending you don't exist …—
Ellen Scott
Ellen Scott1
a
: to move silently like a ghost
b
: to sail quietly in light winds
2
Synonyms of ghost
Examples of ghost in a Sentence
Noun
a house haunted by ghosts
looked for ghosts in the graveyard on Halloween
Verb
She ghosted the mayor's autobiography.
Recent Examples on the Web
ABC News, 28 Jan. 2026
Anna is a misunderstood sixth-grade girl who communicates with the ghosts of her Jewish ancestors.
—Penny Schwartz, Sun Sentinel, 27 Jan. 2026
James Horncastle, New York Times, 26 Jan. 2026
With the chairs officially ghosted, Illinois Senate President Don Harmon’s spokesperson, John Patterson, said the state has to figure out what comes next.
—Jack O'Connor, Chicago Tribune, 24 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ghost
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Noun
Before their arrests in 2018 and 2019, a father and son in Arizona made off with more than $7 million from ghost student scams, and both served 12-month prison sentences after pleading guilty.
—ABC News, 28 Jan. 2026
Anna is a misunderstood sixth-grade girl who communicates with the ghosts of her Jewish ancestors.
—Penny Schwartz, Sun Sentinel, 27 Jan. 2026
Verb
Out of contract in the summer, Weston McKennie is playing some of the best football of his Juventus career, ghosting in from wing-back to act as a second striker.
—James Horncastle, New York Times, 26 Jan. 2026
With the chairs officially ghosted, Illinois Senate President Don Harmon’s spokesperson, John Patterson, said the state has to figure out what comes next.
—Jack O'Connor, Chicago Tribune, 24 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ghost
Cite this Entry
“Ghost.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ghost. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
ghost
1 of 2 noun
: the soul of a dead person thought of as living in an unseen world or as appearing to living people
ghost
2 of 2 verb
ghosted; ghosting
1
: to haunt like a ghost
2
3
informal
: to cut off contact with (someone) abruptly and usually without explanation
Medical Definition
ghost
noun
: a structure (as a cell or tissue) that does not stain normally because of degenerative changes
specifically
: a red blood cell that has lost its hemoglobin
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
