ghostwrite

verb

ghost·​write ˈgōs(t)-ˌrīt 

ghostwrote ˈgōs(t)-ˌrōt  ; ghostwritten ˈgōs(t)-ˌri-tᵊn 

intransitive verb

: to write for and in the name of another

transitive verb

: to write (a speech, a book, etc.) for another who is the presumed or credited author

ghostwriter noun

Examples of ghostwrite in a Sentence

She was hired to ghostwrite the mayor's autobiography.

Recent Examples on the Web

But some of the biggest celebrity memoirs in recent years have made those collaborations harder to ignore, including Britney Spears‘ bombshell 2023 memoir The Woman in Me, ghostwritten by Sam Lansky. — Shyla Watson, PEOPLE, 2 Sep. 2026

Newspaper op-eds from big names have long been ghostwritten by junior staffers or outside PR firms — no disclosure necessary, and often watered down and hyper-optimized to be as palatable as possible. — J.d. Capelouto, semafor.com, 26 Aug. 2026

To stand out, job seekers are advised to embrace strategic imperfection, use hyper-specific details, and limit AI use to minor assistance, not ghostwriting. — Julia Korn, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026

Dervan ended up ghostwriting McCarthy’s memoirs from that tournament. — Daniel Taylor, New York Times, 27 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

back-formation from ghostwriter

First Known Use

1927, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Rhymes for ghostwrite

• affright
• airtight
• albite
• alight
• alright
• aplite
• aright
• bainite
• birthright
• bobwhite
• bornite
• bullfight

Kids Definition

ghostwrite

verb

ghost·​write ˈgō-ˌstrīt 

ghostwrote -ˌstrōt  ; ghostwritten -ˌstrit-ᵊn  ; ghostwriting

-ˌstrīt-iŋ

: to write for and in the name of another

ghostwriter noun