specter

noun

spec·​ter ˈspek-tər 

variants or spectre

1

: a visible disembodied spirit : ghost

2

: something that haunts or perturbs the mind : phantasm

the specter of hunger

Synonyms of specter

• apparition
• ghost
• spirit
• phantom

Examples of specter in a Sentence

feeling so terrified that every shadow became a specter

Recent Examples on the Web

But some of the rhetoric directed against Bottoms is steeped in the specter of race and gender in a state where all 83 governors since 1776 have been white men. — Bill Barrow, Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2026

But some of the rhetoric directed against Bottoms is steeped in specter of race and gender in a state where all 83 governors since 1776 have been white men. — ABC News, 28 Oct. 2026

In addition to social and economic concerns, the specter of Jair Bolsonaro also looms over the election. — David Unsworth, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026

By century’s end, however, the specter of famine had largely receded (aside from tragedies of war and misgovernment, no small caveat). — Literary Hub, 23 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

French spectre, from Latin spectrum appearance, specter, from specere to look, look at — more at spy

First Known Use

1605, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing specter

• raised the specter of
• the specter of (something)

Rhymes for specter

• hector
• lector
• nectar
• rector
• sector
• spectre
• vector
• bisector
• collector
• connector
• corrector
• defector

Kids Definition

specter

noun

spec·​ter

variants or spectre

ˈspek-tər 

1

: ghost

2

: something that bothers the mind