plural hauntings
: an act of haunting
especially
: visitation or inhabitation by a ghost
… its early history is replete with drama: duels, murders, shipwrecks, … even ghostly hauntings. —
Sally Gibson
Sally Gibson When asked about hauntings on Tuesday's tour, [Albert] Walavich said he knew he would get a question about ghosts on Halloween, but he doesn't believe any haunt the grounds. —Taylor Hartz
Taylor Hartz
: having qualities (such as sadness or beauty) that linger in the memory : not easily forgotten
a haunting melody
haunting images
… pale, branchless tree trunks with a haunting, Georgia O'Keeffe quality …—Susannah Master
Susannah Masterhaunting
3 of 3present participle of haunt entry 1
Synonyms of haunting
Examples of haunting in a Sentence
Adjective
the haunting tones of the Highland bagpipes
Recent Examples on the Web
JSTOR Daily, 14 Nov. 2025
With a few simple directions from Lightfoot, the tape started rolling, band members began playing, and out came a haunting, unrelenting sound that evoked the sensation of a roiling sea, complete with an opening drum fill that struck like a thunderclap.
—Brian McCollum, Freep.com, 9 Nov. 2025
Essie Assibu, Variety, 11 Nov. 2025
The video teaser Chrli shared features eerie, horror film–like sound effects and the haunting sound of violins as Charli is pinned down by an elderly hand while staring directly into the camera.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for haunting
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Noun
The study spatializes the socio-cultural haunting of Indigenous and colonial histories and demonstrates how public spaces can be sites of democratic contestation and negotiation.
—JSTOR Daily, 14 Nov. 2025
With a few simple directions from Lightfoot, the tape started rolling, band members began playing, and out came a haunting, unrelenting sound that evoked the sensation of a roiling sea, complete with an opening drum fill that struck like a thunderclap.
—Brian McCollum, Freep.com, 9 Nov. 2025
Adjective
The result is a haunting portrait of resilience and resistance, a reminder that even in war, art remains an act of survival.
—Essie Assibu, Variety, 11 Nov. 2025
The video teaser Chrli shared features eerie, horror film–like sound effects and the haunting sound of violins as Charli is pinned down by an elderly hand while staring directly into the camera.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for haunting
Cite this Entry
“Haunting.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/haunting. Accessed 19 Nov. 2025.
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