as in demon
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Recent Examples of incubus
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.
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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
This meaning is visualized in Henry Fuseli’s 1781 painting The Nightmare, which shows a woman sleeping peacefully on a couch while a nauseating monster—an incubus—sits portentously on her abdomen, unbeknownst to her.
—
Time,
28 Dec. 2022
As Tommy’s experiences in the tunnels of France mark a continued incubus for his character, with visions of being pulled into the mud, the sounding of the bell coincides with his own inner peace.
—
Josh St. Clair,
Men's Health,
13 June 2022
An incubus is the male variety (and also that band).
—
Angie Jones,
Glamour,
17 Mar. 2022
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
This meaning is visualized in Henry Fuseli’s 1781 painting The Nightmare, which shows a woman sleeping peacefully on a couch while a nauseating monster—an incubus—sits portentously on her abdomen, unbeknownst to her.
—
Time,
28 Dec. 2022
As Tommy’s experiences in the tunnels of France mark a continued incubus for his character, with visions of being pulled into the mud, the sounding of the bell coincides with his own inner peace.
—
Josh St. Clair,
Men's Health,
13 June 2022
An incubus is the male variety (and also that band).
—
Angie Jones,
Glamour,
17 Mar. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for incubus
Noun
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There are highs and lows, angels and demons.
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Davion Mitchell is a defensive demon.
Noun
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Three species of bats inhabit the site, and supernatural events—including the appearance of the gamekeeper’s ghost and the wail of a banshee—have been reported.
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Weaving, even more than before, makes Grace an ingénue gone banshee.
Noun
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That’s the £312 million phantom.
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Such a designation, evidently, would save agents from wasting time chasing phantoms.
Noun
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Night of the Living Dead centers all the action at a farmhouse, where seven people attempt to ward off the ghouls — without any prior knowledge of how to do so.
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Jittery housemaid Miss Lamb (Thomasin McKenzie) proves less trouble to manage, as Fred scares the wits out of her with bogus talk of a ghoul wandering the Moors.
Noun
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At her very best, Emily behaves like a petulant pre-adolescent spoiled imp.
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The second was more bizarre: that some nasty imp in my psyche might decide that jumping was a good idea.
Noun
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The score by Joseph Bishara is shivery with chorales that moan like wraiths in the wind.
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Pilots can see bad weather lurking in the distance hours before takeoff, glowing like a wraith on their digital maps.
Noun
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The Legislature’s independent fiscal analysts have also raised concerns that the state’s books remain vulnerable to the specter of a deep drop-off in the stock market.
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Civil libertarians say the use of this tracking data raises the specter of mass surveillance on innocent people.
Noun
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Reports of strange sounds, apparitions, and unexplained encounters continue to attract visitors.
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Why then, when discussing body image after weight changes, is our culture reaching for the language of vexing apparitions and death?
Cite this Entry
“Incubus.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incubus. Accessed 1 Jul. 2026.
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