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

Behind the scenes, communications teams often ghostwrite the updates that appear under a CEO’s name. —Rachel Ventresca, Fortune, 6 Mar. 2026

And while the exact statistics are impossible to determine, several current ghostwriting websites proclaim that over 50% of the books currently on the NY Times non-fiction bestseller list have been ghostwritten, though many agents and ghostwriters assure me that figure is too low. —Literary Hub, 4 Mar. 2026

Erika Toda portrays Hosoki, while Sairi Ito plays Minori Uozumi, a writer tasked with ghostwriting Hosoki’s autobiography. —Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 27 Jan. 2026

Ito Sairi plays Uozumi Minori, a writer tasked with ghostwriting Hosoki’s autobiography. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 27 Jan. 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