1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

imp

noun

ˈimp How to pronounce imp (audio)
Definition of impnext
1
as in monkey
an appealingly mischievous person scooped up the little imp and took him to bed

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in demon
an evil spirit a story about a crumbling mansion infested with a brood of imps

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 imp It’s believed that the 13th-century castle is haunted by a magical imp who frequently visits the Markomanka and Hlíza, or black, towers. — Sophie Friedman, AFAR Media, 22 Oct. 2025 Tim Burton's film explores the border between life and the afterlife with some of the best in the biz, from Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin’s wholesome (and dead) homeowners to Winona Ryder's angsty teen to her ridiculous mother (Catherine O'Hara) to the imp with a limp (Michael Keaton). — Gwen Ihnat, Entertainment Weekly, 18 Oct. 2025 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 Combining animation and live action, the film continues the adventures of the magical imp Pumuckl. — Ed Meza, Variety, 13 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for imp
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imp
  1. monkey
  2. demon
  3. devil
  4. ghost
  5. ghoul
  6. vampire
Noun
  • Long-range inhibitory neurons marked by the activity of these genes have been known for some time, based on studies in monkeys, but researchers couldn’t figure out how to manipulate them using these genes.
    — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The decision comes two weeks after a video captured Lincoln-Way East students making monkey-like gestures toward Homewood-Flossmoor students during a football game on September 4th.
    — Darius Johnson, CBS News, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of monkey
Noun
  • Flashes of the underworld, Family Guy-style, ensue, with flames, skeletons, demons, a mariachi band and various forms of torture setting the mood.
    — Greg Evans, Deadline, 26 Sep. 2026
  • There are references to demons, being burned alive, and the duende king explicitly commands his minions to kill Jo and Raissa.
    — Parents, Parents, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of demon
Noun
  • Dostoyevsky’s sniveling devil comes closest to portraying the man chiefly responsible for organizing the Final Solution.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Sep. 2026
  • In January, Watts was a guest on actor Rainn Wilson’s podcast, where Watts played devil’s advocate to Wilson’s skeptic about casual use of mind-altering substances.
    — Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of devil
Noun
  • Swift is a ghost of girlfriends past haunting Johnson in the video, sleeping in bed next to her, knocking drinks over to warn her to leave her ominous partner.
    — Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 28 Sep. 2026
  • What in the zeitgeist lends itself to this burgeoning fascination with ghosts and the afterlife?
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of ghost
Noun
  • At once not quite real and all too real, Cohn has the uncanny presence of a ghoul or a fiend.
    — Fintan O’Toole, The New York Review of Books, 19 Sep. 2026
  • Gemma even winds up having to give a teeth cleaning to one of the silent, creepy ghouls pursuing her.
    — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of ghoul
Noun
  • Novelist and screenwriter Anne Rice led the charge against Cruise’s casting as Lestat de Lioncourt, a French theater actor in the 1700s who’d already become an immortal vampire by the time he’s introduced.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Here, Martha uses small white pumpkins to create fanged vampire and winged pat pumpkins.
    — Wendy Rose Gould, Martha Stewart, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of vampire

Browse Nearby Words

immutableness
imp
impact
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Imp.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imp. Accessed 29 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of argot

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of the words cracker fly and sale arranged in a triangle with the word fire in the middle
Triple Play Quiz Find the word that pairs with each of the three g...
See All