variants
also bogyman
as in specter
Related Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bogeyman
His other go-to bogeyman, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, is now firmly in his lame-duck era as his term ends this spring.
—
Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 11 Jan. 2026
Among Hollywood’s creative class, AI is a sort of bogeyman right now.
—Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 10 Dec. 2025
Souleymane, played devastatingly by first-timer Abou Sangaré, is neither a bogeyman or a saint — just a young man trying to navigate a bureaucratic limbo that might as well have been designed to make those in it vulnerable to exploitation.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 1 Dec. 2025
The world's largest online streamer and feared bogeyman (along with YouTube) of traditional media companies is taking yet another baby step into sports.
—Alex Sherman,contessa Brewer, CNBC, 27 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bogeyman
Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 11 Jan. 2026
Among Hollywood’s creative class, AI is a sort of bogeyman right now.
—Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 10 Dec. 2025
Souleymane, played devastatingly by first-timer Abou Sangaré, is neither a bogeyman or a saint — just a young man trying to navigate a bureaucratic limbo that might as well have been designed to make those in it vulnerable to exploitation.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 1 Dec. 2025
The world's largest online streamer and feared bogeyman (along with YouTube) of traditional media companies is taking yet another baby step into sports.
—Alex Sherman,contessa Brewer, CNBC, 27 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bogeyman
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bogeyman
Noun
-
There is also the spectre of NBC’s unceremonious cancellation of Law & Order after 20 seasons that also came down to the wire in May 2010.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
16 Apr. 2026
-
Now, the specter of genocide and famine haunts the region once again.—
Emmanuel Akinwotu,
NPR,
15 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
This control sequence, called a Hamiltonian, acts like Maxwell’s demon, flip-flopping a supposedly irreversible sequence of events forward to backward.—
Stephanie Pappas,
Scientific American,
21 Apr. 2026
-
Two Thousand and Late (Atypical Artists) Two Thousand and Late tells the story of a demon from hell sent to bring along the apocalypse.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The Devil’s Museum, a satellite of the main collection, has amassed more than 3,000 depictions of demons, evil spirits and incubus from around the world.—
Joe Yogerst,
Forbes.com,
22 Apr. 2025
-
Your fame sits beside you like an incubus, and people are embarrassed and want to leave the room.—
Candace Bushnell,
Vogue,
23 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
Created by a number of its stars, Ghosts originated on the BBC in 2019, following a group of ghouls from different historical periods haunting a country house while sharing the house with its new living occupants.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
25 Mar. 2026
-
Ledger ingeniously plays the Joker as a chaotic force of nature, a scarred and unknowable ghoul clad in clown paint and a garish suit from Demon's Wearhouse.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Such a designation, evidently, would save agents from wasting time chasing phantoms.—
Adam Ciralsky,
Vanity Fair,
19 Mar. 2026
-
The Stygiomedusa gigantea, commonly known as the giant phantom jelly, was filmed at 250 meters below the surface.—
Michelle Del Rey,
USA Today,
4 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Weaving, even more than before, makes Grace an ingénue gone banshee.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
14 Mar. 2026
-
The bond between a rider and their banshee doesn't break, and chances are your bond with this two-figure set won't either.—
Fran Ruiz,
Space.com,
19 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
But in 2022, the Guidestones became a flashpoint that resulted in a real-world act of domestic terror – a mystery that to this day, has never been solved.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
21 Apr. 2026
-
On Sunday morning, the usual crowds filled the streets as bars and nightclubs were closing in Sacramento when the sound of rapid-fire gunshots sent people running in terror.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
At her very best, Emily behaves like a petulant pre-adolescent spoiled imp.—
Liza Lentini,
SPIN,
14 Apr. 2026
-
The second was more bizarre: that some nasty imp in my psyche might decide that jumping was a good idea.—
Rosecrans Baldwin,
Travel + Leisure,
10 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bogeyman.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bogeyman. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
