variants
also fantasm
1
as in illusion
a conception or image created by the imagination and having no objective reality
frightened by the phantasms of his own making
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in apparition
the soul of a dead person thought of especially as appearing to living people
believed that she'd seen the phantasm of her father on the anniversary of his death
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of phantasm
But is the gender phantasm as crucial to the global far right as Butler claims?
—
Katha Pollitt, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2024
Likewise, Poe’s devilish ambiguity, his production of phantasms both real and imagined, undergirds James’s own ventures into the genre.
—Phillip MacIak, The New Republic, 11 Oct. 2023
Those are all real things, not the phantasms of a junk-food loving fourth-grader’s fever dreams.
—Emily Heil, Washington Post, 22 Aug. 2023
And sometimes the phantasms of artificial intelligence can prompt, in the prompter, genuine emotion.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for phantasm
Katha Pollitt, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2024
Likewise, Poe’s devilish ambiguity, his production of phantasms both real and imagined, undergirds James’s own ventures into the genre.
—Phillip MacIak, The New Republic, 11 Oct. 2023
Those are all real things, not the phantasms of a junk-food loving fourth-grader’s fever dreams.
—Emily Heil, Washington Post, 22 Aug. 2023
And sometimes the phantasms of artificial intelligence can prompt, in the prompter, genuine emotion.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for phantasm
Recent Examples of Synonyms for phantasm
Noun
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More surprisingly, the checklist of stunts does lend itself to the film-with-in-the-film’s ever-unfolding, ad hoc script, with the boys wearing a very funny cut-out of Darby’s face to give the illusion of a leading man holding it all together.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
18 Mar. 2026
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Even the most die-hard anti-American cleric in the Iranian political system did not harbor illusions that Iran could defeat the United States in conventional ways.—
Daniel DePetris,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The story follows a young woman who regains consciousness after three years in a coma, only to be confronted by the apparition of her deceased sister, as their mother’s search for the truth behind the sister’s death gradually uncovers a dark hereditary secret stretching back centuries.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
17 Mar. 2026
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Mercury puts on its best evening apparition of 2025 for Northern Hemisphere observers during these two weeks.—
Joe Rao,
Space.com,
2 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Talking about our dreams for Chicago is a way to connect with people, to fortify our faith in each other and the possibility that Chicago can be closer to complete.—
Mary Schmich,
Chicago Tribune,
22 Mar. 2026
-
And eventually, this did become a dream.—
Justice delos Santos,
Mercury News,
22 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Even a house ghost who might not come through the door, but sometimes makes her — probably her — presence known.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
20 Mar. 2026
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Natalie, a ghost who forgot she was exorcised, asks who is going to get the Pinocchio mask.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
20 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Last year, Massachusetts created the first curriculum for high school students designed to prevent gambling harm, focused on sports betting and daily fantasy sports.—
Suzy Khimm,
NBC news,
19 Mar. 2026
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Previously, O’Rourke had a major role alongside fellow Cognition clients Caitríona Balfe and Tobias Menzies in Starz’s historical fantasy series Outlander, based on the book series by Diana Gabaldon.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
19 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Missile exchanges have jarred with the spirit of the holidays underway across the region.—
Siham Shamalakh,
Washington Post,
22 Mar. 2026
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Waddle is a diminutive deity in Texas, where whispers of his spirit twist across baseball diamonds and basketball courts and football fields from Bellaire to the Woodlands to Dallas.—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
22 Mar. 2026
Noun
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More than masturbatory daydreams, Vladimir inspires our heroine to write with abandon, ignoring professional and personal obligations in service to her muse.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
5 Mar. 2026
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Below, some of the finest, high-quality ruffled bedding around the web for creating the frothy bedscape of your daydreams.—
Yelena Moroz Alpert,
Architectural Digest,
28 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Such a designation, evidently, would save agents from wasting time chasing phantoms.—
Adam Ciralsky,
Vanity Fair,
19 Mar. 2026
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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
Cite this Entry
“Phantasm.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/phantasm. Accessed 23 Mar. 2026.
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