1
as in spirits
the soul of a dead person thought of especially as appearing to living people
looked for ghosts in the graveyard on Halloween
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in damns
the smallest amount or part imaginable
she may be a good endurance runner, but she doesn't stand a ghost of a chance of winning in a sprint
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in relics
a tiny often physical indication of something lost or vanished
the down-at-the-heels town house is but a ghost of the neighborhood's former grandeur
Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in demons
an evil spirit
the vengeful ghosts of seamen who were deliberately shipwrecked upon these shores
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ghosts
Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 11 Jan. 2026
Pine, who struggles with the ghosts of his past, leads a surveillance group called The Night Owls and is meant to stay out of the action.
—Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 11 Jan. 2026
Sometimes even ghosts change their minds and respond.
—Judith Martin, Sun Sentinel, 7 Jan. 2026
Lyric essays on ghosts and hidden heroes–like Jan Karski, the Polish Resistance fighter–explore the ways and reasons people choose to disappear.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Jan. 2026
This internal journey is deeply tied to the ghosts of Springsteen’s past, particularly his complex relationship with his father, Doug Springsteen.
—Robert Lang, Deadline, 6 Jan. 2026
These ghosts, which take the form of their dead friends, are mostly just goofy, with the shoddy special effects and glowy auras giving the whole thing a distinctly Haunted Mansion vibe; critically, the threat never feels real, which undermines any tension.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
The ghosts of a 37-0 shutout to Iowa less than a month ago still lingered — the boos that faded into silence, the homecoming crowd that emptied before the fourth quarter, the scoreboard stuck on humiliation.
—Ira Gorawara, New York Times, 9 Nov. 2025
The ghosts of the Nazi past reared their heads when The Secret Floor premiered at the Goldener Spatz in Gera, Germany.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 5 Nov. 2025
Noun
Tony Sparano, whom Ross inherited, Joe Philbin, Adam Gase, Brian Flores and Mike McDaniel are the ghosts who haunt this franchise.
—Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 11 Jan. 2026
Pine, who struggles with the ghosts of his past, leads a surveillance group called The Night Owls and is meant to stay out of the action.
—Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 11 Jan. 2026
Sometimes even ghosts change their minds and respond.
—Judith Martin, Sun Sentinel, 7 Jan. 2026
Lyric essays on ghosts and hidden heroes–like Jan Karski, the Polish Resistance fighter–explore the ways and reasons people choose to disappear.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Jan. 2026
This internal journey is deeply tied to the ghosts of Springsteen’s past, particularly his complex relationship with his father, Doug Springsteen.
—Robert Lang, Deadline, 6 Jan. 2026
These ghosts, which take the form of their dead friends, are mostly just goofy, with the shoddy special effects and glowy auras giving the whole thing a distinctly Haunted Mansion vibe; critically, the threat never feels real, which undermines any tension.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
The ghosts of a 37-0 shutout to Iowa less than a month ago still lingered — the boos that faded into silence, the homecoming crowd that emptied before the fourth quarter, the scoreboard stuck on humiliation.
—Ira Gorawara, New York Times, 9 Nov. 2025
The ghosts of the Nazi past reared their heads when The Secret Floor premiered at the Goldener Spatz in Gera, Germany.
—Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 5 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ghosts
Noun
-
Despite its name, the bar operates as a globally minded cocktail destination with equal attention paid to other spirits, along with small bites and an impressive cigar selection.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
8 Jan. 2026
-
And for Dirty Shirleys, different spirits, including vodka, gin, tequila and vermouth can be substituted.—
Greta Cross,
USA Today,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The historic downtown is full of antique mining relics and quirky businesses.—
Jen Murphy,
Outside,
7 Jan. 2026
-
The square Edelman and fellow students dug in, after determining the spot might yield interesting relics, did produce tiles, pieces of ceramic and more.—
Helen I. Bennett,
Hartford Courant,
5 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
As Amadeus’ brilliance continues to flourish in spite of his personal demons, a questionable reputation and skepticism from the conservative court, Salieri becomes increasingly tormented by this apparent divine gift.—
Ellise Shafer,
Variety,
15 Jan. 2026
-
Allan Webster is a talented man with dreams and ambition — and demons, plenty of demons.—
Jamie L. LaReau,
USA Today,
10 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The image combines each planet's nightly positions during separate 2025 apparitions, assembled by astrophotographer Petr Horálek, a NOIRLab Audiovisual Ambassador.—
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry,
Space.com,
9 Jan. 2026
-
Sam slips back into her addiction and as her alcoholism worsens, so do the visions and apparitions that seem to be haunting the forest.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Cowboy and cowgirl hoots and hollers complement the rumbling of the massive animals’ hooves as they’re rounded up into the corrals.—
Lydia Mansel,
Travel + Leisure,
28 Dec. 2025
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There are hoots and hollers from raucous tourists on Bourbon Street, for example.—
Matt Alderton,
USA Today,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Rodgers and Tsvyk located the cheesecake container that Nasyrova had brought to Tsvyk's home and testing revealed traces of phenazepam.—
Raven Brunner,
PEOPLE,
16 Jan. 2026
-
The firm builds exposure maps that visualize an individual’s digital vulnerabilities — linking addresses, relatives, dormant emails, old domains, platform accounts, leaked identifiers and dark-web traces into a single cohesive picture.—
Wyles Daniel,
Miami Herald,
14 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Kids can trick-or-treat at Calico Ghost Town shops and businesses before the sun falls and ghouls fill the park.—
Brady MacDonald,
Oc Register,
29 Dec. 2025
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No disrespect to Purnell, who perfectly calibrated Lucy’s intrinsic hopefulness in the first season and slowly begins to curdle it this go-round as Lucy spends more time among ghouls, raiders, cannibals, and various other feuding factions.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
16 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
Adding the killer’s voice just pads an already too-long book.—
Maren Longbella,
Boston Herald,
19 Oct. 2025
-
Not to say there aren’t some clunkers, most notably a jokey take-me-out-to-the-ballgame baseball number that pads the second act, but the Flaherty-Ahrens score was and is Ragtime‘s signature achievement.—
Greg Evans,
Deadline,
16 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ghosts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ghosts. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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