variants
also bogyman
as in spectre
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
In lesser hands, the family’s unfortunately topical adversaries could be but straw bogeymen or non pareil Darth Vaders.
—
Emily Temple
may 27, Literary Hub, 27 May 2025
Now, though, their favorite bogeyman, Gary Gensler, the Securities and Exchange Commission chief under President Joe Biden, is gone.
—Allison Morrow, CNN, 20 Mar. 2025
The film is in a defensive posture, feeling itself ensnared in the media’s bogeyman narrative and responding strenuously to every swipe.
—Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 17 May 2025
Much like how Trump has made China a key bogeyman in his trade war, protectionists like Carey linked tariffs to a patriotic, nationalistic disdain for Britain.
— Made By History, Time, 28 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bogeyman
Emily Temple
may 27, Literary Hub, 27 May 2025
Now, though, their favorite bogeyman, Gary Gensler, the Securities and Exchange Commission chief under President Joe Biden, is gone.
—Allison Morrow, CNN, 20 Mar. 2025
The film is in a defensive posture, feeling itself ensnared in the media’s bogeyman narrative and responding strenuously to every swipe.
—Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 17 May 2025
Much like how Trump has made China a key bogeyman in his trade war, protectionists like Carey linked tariffs to a patriotic, nationalistic disdain for Britain.
— Made By History, Time, 28 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bogeyman
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bogeyman
Noun
-
Analysts note Mamdani’s promises to raise corporate taxes and income taxes on millionaires and freeze rents raise the specter of a leftward shift for America’s biggest city.—
Christer Holloman,
Forbes.com,
25 June 2025
-
The decision to close the waterway now rests with the country's national security council, and its possibility has raised the specter of higher energy prices and aggravated geopolitical tensions, with Washington calling upon Beijing to prevent the strait's closure.—
Lim Hui Jie,
CNBC,
23 June 2025
Noun
-
Hero Tanjiro Kamado, a boy who joined the Demon Slayer Corps after his younger sister Nezuko was transformed into a demon, finds himself and his Demon Slayer comrades inside the demons’ stronghold – the Infinity Castle, where the scene is set for the final battle between Corps and demons.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
28 June 2025
-
The only survivor is his youngest sister Nezuko, who has been turned into a demon herself.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
28 June 2025
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
-
Some titles are now out of print, but these classic horror stories are a great foray into the world of ghosts, ghouls, and things that go bump in the night.—
Marilyn La Jeunesse,
Parents,
10 Apr. 2025
-
Despite those forty-three words, the ghoul that the North Carolina Freedmen’s Convention feared most had risen—caste preservationists debuted a new caste system.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 June 2025
Noun
-
Aeacus, a judge of the dead, and Thanatos, winged daemon of death, are chthonic.—
Lewis Hyde,
Harpers Magazine,
18 June 2025
-
The Rose Field begins where the second book, The Secret Commonwealth leaves off: Lyra alone in a city full of daemons, or physical projections of a person's soul, looking for Pantalaimon as her mentor, Malcolm Polstead, searches for her.—
Rachel Raposas,
People.com,
29 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Rubin hopes to tally these same sorts of deep-space particles, the kind that all of Earth is constantly microdosing, phantom starlight from the farthest reaches of the universe.—
Michael Jones McKean,
The Atlantic,
23 June 2025
-
At least until quarter to 2, when Lindsay Lohan whorls through the door like a raspy chaos phantom.—
Jeff Weiss,
HollywoodReporter,
12 June 2025
Noun
-
In each episode, a young girl traveling with her musician mother encounters mysterious entities, including sirens, banshees, werewolves and more.—
Keith Langston,
People.com,
6 July 2025
-
But just before all the banshee wailing threatens to overwhelm proceedings, along comes a hypnotic tribal beat which briefly turns the wake into a party.—
Jon O'Brien,
Vulture,
13 May 2025
Noun
-
The mushroom’s healing properties also lead to hallucinations, often involving mysterious white imps, who should be adorable and instead come across as menacing little ghouls.—
Alan Sepinwall,
Rolling Stone,
18 June 2025
-
And Dot — well, Dot keeps an imp in an old wine bottle.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
17 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bogeyman.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bogeyman. Accessed 9 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share