as in ghost
the soul of a dead person thought of especially as appearing to living people
we thought a poltergeist was knocking dishes off the shelves, but it turned out to just be vibrations from passing trains
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Recent Examples of poltergeist
Things take a turn when the family discovers that their charming rental is already occupied—by a centuries old poltergeist.
—
Annabelle Canela, Parents, 26 Mar. 2025
Houses have always been haunted, but, whereas poltergeists of yore troubled the suburban idyll of white America, in these shows the scariest spectre is a disappearing profit margin.
—Jennifer Wilson, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2025
That zone also unleashes Hayden Gray as a passing lane poltergeist; Gray leads the entire country in steal rate.
—Jim Root, The Athletic, 19 Feb. 2025
Enraged, the spirit goes upstairs to his room and begins to cause poltergeist activity like breaking shelves, throwing objects and tearing down posters.
—Keith Langston, People.com, 27 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for poltergeist
Annabelle Canela, Parents, 26 Mar. 2025
Houses have always been haunted, but, whereas poltergeists of yore troubled the suburban idyll of white America, in these shows the scariest spectre is a disappearing profit margin.
—Jennifer Wilson, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2025
That zone also unleashes Hayden Gray as a passing lane poltergeist; Gray leads the entire country in steal rate.
—Jim Root, The Athletic, 19 Feb. 2025
Enraged, the spirit goes upstairs to his room and begins to cause poltergeist activity like breaking shelves, throwing objects and tearing down posters.
—Keith Langston, People.com, 27 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for poltergeist
Recent Examples of Synonyms for poltergeist
Noun
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Starks’ dream is to someday visit the Warren Occult Museum in Connecticut, which is closed to the public, but open to guests who book overnight stays at the home of late, famed ghost hunters Ed and Lorraine Warren.—
Eve Chen,
USA Today,
5 Oct. 2025
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Former teen heartthrob Devon Sawa briefly appeared at the end of Casper, playing the titular ghost's human form.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 Oct. 2025
Noun
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In winter, breath crystallizes in the air, and the animals resemble pale apparitions in an otherworldly landscape of snow and ice.—
Susan Portnoy,
AFAR Media,
3 Oct. 2025
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Forced to participate in increasingly macabre rituals and tests, Giacomo is consumed by the sinister — as apparitions, ghosts and deadly rumors start to accumulate.—
Christian Blauvelt,
IndieWire,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Throughout an offseason devoted to expansive training, that spirit was on full display — including during the lively knockout games at Prentiss’ gym.—
Vincent Z. Mercogliano,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
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Wrangler and Filson have come together to create a collection that captures the spirit of the American frontier.—
Angela Velasquez,
Sourcing Journal,
1 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Staff also report hearing phantom singing in the visitors' area and a mysterious spirit rearranging the coins in the gift shop register.—
Paige Moore,
AZCentral.com,
3 Oct. 2025
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Future Antarctic and radio-neutrino arrays will decide if ANITA glimpsed a phantom or a frontier.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Poltergeist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/poltergeist. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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