ghastly

adjective

ghast·​ly ˈgast-lē How to pronounce ghastly (audio)
ghastlier; ghastliest
1
a
: terrifyingly horrible to the senses : frightening
a ghastly crime
b
: intensely unpleasant, disagreeable, or objectionable
such a life seems ghastly in its emptiness and sterilityAldous Huxley
2
: resembling a ghost
3
obsolete : filled with fear
4
: very great
a ghastly mistake
ghastliness noun
ghastly adverb
Choose the Right Synonym for ghastly

ghastly, grisly, gruesome, macabre, lurid mean horrifying and repellent in appearance or aspect.

ghastly suggests the terrifying aspects of corpses and ghosts.

a ghastly accident

grisly and gruesome suggest additionally the results of extreme violence or cruelty.

an unusually grisly murder
suffered a gruesome death

macabre implies a morbid preoccupation with the physical aspects of death.

a macabre tale of premature burial

lurid adds to gruesome the suggestion of shuddering fascination with violent death and especially with murder.

the lurid details of a crime

Examples of ghastly in a Sentence

You're making a ghastly mistake. His room was a ghastly mess.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Over the past three postseasons, Hellebuyck is a flabbergasting 1-9 on the road with a ghastly .838 save percentage and an almost unfathomable 4.98 goals-against average. Mark Lazerus, New York Times, 16 May 2025 Yet, after saving several lives, the survivors begin to die anyway, one by one: also in ghastly fashion, also in freakish, Rube Goldberg machine-like sequences. Gregory Nussen, Deadline, 13 May 2025 Putin having another two months to pick away at Kyiv’s frontlines would leave Zelensky facing another ghastly winter. Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 10 May 2025 His naïveté was on full display, as well as his ghastly poor judgment. Stephanie Nolasco , Ashley Papa, FOXNews.com, 6 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for ghastly

Word History

Etymology

Middle English gastly, from gasten to terrify — more at gast

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of ghastly was in the 14th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Ghastly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ghastly. Accessed 23 May. 2025.

Kids Definition

ghastly

adjective
ghast·​ly ˈgast-lē How to pronounce ghastly (audio)
ghastlier; ghastliest
1
a
: horrible sense 1, shocking
a ghastly crime
b
: very unpleasant, disagreeable, or objectionable
2
: resembling a ghost
a ghastly face
ghastliness noun
ghastly adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on ghastly

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