vampire

play

noun vam·pire \ ˈvam-ˌpī(-ə)r \

Definition of vampire

1 :the reanimated body of a dead person believed to come from the grave at night and suck the blood of persons asleep

2 a :one who lives by preying on others

b :a woman who exploits and ruins her lover

3 :vampire bat

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vampiric

play \vam-ˈpir-ik\ adjective

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vampirish

play \ˈvam-ˌpī(-ə)r-ish\ adjective

See vampire defined for English-language learners

See vampire defined for kids

Examples of vampire in a Sentence

regarded debt collectors as vampires who made a living from the misery of others

Recent Examples of vampire from the Web

The Lost Boys’ Subtly Radical Vision of Family—Brandon Tensley revisits the 1987 vampire horror-comedy that debuted at a time when America was preoccupied with the evolution of traditional kinship bonds.

— the editors, The Atlantic, "The Atlantic's Week in Culture," 4 Aug. 2017
A New Dawn When Twilight author Stephenie Meyer first announced a new supernatural TV series in the works called The Rook, some wondered if this might be related, somehow, to her enormously popular vampire and werewolf romances.

— joanna robinson, HWD, "New Details on The Rook TV Series from Twilight’s Stephenie Meyer," 28 July 2017
The world that Charlaine created, with assassins and vampires and psychics, lends itself to all sorts of surprising events.

— david martindale, star-telegram, "New NBC series ‘Midnight, Texas’ is where the magic happens, Charlaine Harris-style," 20 July 2017
The Girls star is officially joining Murphy's kooky world of latex monsters, catty witches, lobster people, and Lady Gaga vampires.

— christopher rosa, Glamour, "Lena Dunham Is Joining the Cast of 'American Horror Story'," 20 July 2017
John Robert Lindsey made a properly evil Monostatos (a dead ringer for the vampire Nosferatu), accompanied by terrifying dogs rather than slaves.

— janelle gelfand, Cincinnati.com, "'The Magic Flute' a surreal visual extravaganza," 16 July 2017
Stephen Moyer, who played the lead vampire on the series, wrote a short essay about his time with Ellis, capturing exactly what made the actor’s performance so indelible.

— yohana desta, HWD, "Third Time’s a Charm for Spider-Man," 10 July 2017
Ellis’s Lafayette was a cook at a diner who dealt drug-like vampire blood on the side.

— vanityfair.com, ""Little Boxes" Premiere - 2016 Tribeca Film Festival," 9 July 2017
Ellis was best known for playing a flamboyant, cross-dressing, short-order cook in all seven seasons of the HBO vampire series 'True Blood.'

— anna claire vollers, AL.com, "'True Blood' stars mourn Nelsan Ellis, Bessemer native, dead at 39," 9 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'vampire.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.