GHOULISH Synonyms: 54 Similar and Opposite Words

ghoulish

adjective

Definition of ghoulish

as in ghostly

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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 ghoulish Your friends and family won’t be able to resist smiling at their ghoulish greeting. — Madison Yauger, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2026 The video for the title track sees Grande nervously walking past one as her character, aspiring actress Pepper, is on the way to audition for a bunch of ghoulish men. — Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 3 Aug. 2026 That feeling is not helped by looking at the others around you, who, in the eerie, silvery light, suddenly look almost ghoulish. — Jamie Carter, Space.com, 3 Aug. 2026 The Ghastly Grotto started its life as a simple CostCo shed, but Mitchell has since turned it into a full-scale tiki bar, with niches and grottos packed with art, figurines and other bric-a-brac, all with a ghoulish bent. — Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 18 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for ghoulish

Recent Examples of Synonyms for ghoulish

Adjective

Wearing matching powder blue dresses and shoulder-length brown wigs with bangs pinned to the left, the married couple wore pale makeup adding to the ghostly look.

— Arushi Jacob, Footwear News, 2 Nov. 2026
Many of these ghostly impressions and meanings have survived to the present day.

— Anthony Wood, Space.com, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of ghostly

Adjective

Unfortunately, the disembodied feet on my aunt’s staircase were my last spectral sighting and the mournful whistling was my last haunting.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 Oct. 2026
Its haunting finale featured a spectral Kate Moss floating inside a glass pyramid, conjured through a 19th-century illusion known as Pepper’s Ghost.

— Livia Caligor, Vogue, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of spectral

Adjective

The results in Game 1 were ghastly, reminding fans of the infinibuild Oilers who could not and would not play defence.

— Allan Mitchell, New York Times, 3 Oct. 2026
Does the movie go too easy on the man who eventually gave us Fox News and decades of ghastly politics?

— Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of ghastly

Adjective

How Eclipse Images Sparked a Scientific Partnership When Druckmüller developed the film from his 1999 eclipse expedition, the photographs didn’t do justice to the event’s eerie beauty.

— IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 5 Nov. 2026
The six-episode thriller paints an eerie image of small-town life in Newfoundland, and viewers are intrigued by the mystique of the striking Canadian backdrop.

— Rachel Chang, Condé Nast Traveler, 3 Nov. 2026

Definition of eerie

Adjective

What captures Linus’ imagination during our spookiest holiday season is a Santa Claus-like darkling creature known as the Great Pumpkin.

— Colin Fleming, Chicago Tribune, 30 Oct. 2026
The spookiest cities of 2026 have officially been named, according to a new study conducted by Vivint.

— Natalia Senanayake, PEOPLE, 28 Oct. 2026

Definition of spooky

Adjective

Adapting Su Tong’s 1990 novel Wives and Concubines, Zhang took a stark tale of female oppression and turned it into a haunting sonata of color, light, composition, mood, and sound, without diluting its slow-burn savagery.

— Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2026
As a result, as the elements of Jurek’s towering and astonishing crimes begin to click together, the plot quickly shifts, leading the narrative into entirely different and ever more haunting directions.

— Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of haunting

Adjective

Donning a creepy mask of Democratic rival Xavier Becerra, Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton dashed around a children’s Halloween event dishing out candy and warnings about potential liberal tax policies.

— Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 1 Nov. 2026
Throughout outer space lie stars and galaxies that resemble creepy creatures, spooky skulls and galactic ghouls.

— Mary Randolph, Scientific American, 31 Oct. 2026

Definition of creepy

Browse Nearby Words

ghoulies

ghoulish

ghoulishness

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“Ghoulish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ghoulish. Accessed 11 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of ghoulish

adjective

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