haint

noun

ˈhānt 

plural haints

: the soul of a dead person and especially one that is mischievous or mean

A haint is a restless ghost who has not left the world, but has remained behind to haunt the living with trickery that is often harmless, but sometimes more sinister in nature.

—Katie Carman

African-American folklore contends that haints can take any form at will, from everyday objects to … fantastic creatures …

—Lynne Adele

Ever hear the tale of Montrose, the 8-foot tall haint who hung out at a spooky, moss-draped … cemetery in the late 1950s and early 1960s, scaring the daylights out of those who ventured there?

—Dwight Dana

Examples of haint in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This isn't quite for aesthetic purposes—painting your ceiling this hue, known as haint blue, will keep evil spirits from entering your home. —Abby Fribush, Southern Living, 7 Apr. 2026

The porch ceiling was repainted in haint blue, a hue believed to ward off evil spirits, with roots in the traditions of the Gullah Geechee people, descendants of enslaved Africans in the American South. —Carly Olson, Architectural Digest, 17 Nov. 2025

This paint trick isn't just for indoor spaces, in fact, there is a longstanding tradition of painting porch ceilings in shades of haint blue to create a sky-like effect. —Maria Sabella, Better Homes & Gardens, 15 May 2025

Here's what to know about haints, including a compilation of viewers' genuine reactions to Coogler's subtle reference. —Amaris Encinas, USA Today, 24 Apr. 2025

At the time, haint blue could be made only by cultivating and processing indigo plants, which was a labor-intensive, often dangerous endeavor undertaken by enslaved workers in antebellum America. —Omari Weekes, The Atlantic, 13 Feb. 2025

For the Gullah Geechee people, the color blue—haint blue, specifically—is also meant to keep evil spirits away. —Latria Graham, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 May 2023

Word History

Etymology

variant of haunt entry 2 in sense "ghost"

Note: Compare the entry for haunt in the Dictionary of American Regional English. In reference to forms the editors cite H. Kurath and R. McDavid, The Pronunciation of English in the Atlantic States (Ann Arbor, 1961), p. 161: "…haunted, with the vowel /e/ of eight, occurs in parts of the Carolinas, in Georgia, and in West Virginia."

First Known Use

1912, in the meaning defined above