spookish

adjective

Definition of spookishnext
as in haunting
fearfully and mysteriously strange or fantastic the spookish interior of a Victorian mansion that had seen better days

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for spookish
  1. haunting
  2. eerie
  3. creepy
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
  • When investigators started probing the patch, a sound rang out that was both eerie and relieving — the shrill cries of a baby screaming at the top of his lungs.
    — Holly Yan, CNN Money, 12 Nov. 2026
  • Keyboardist Jason Derlatka took over for two songs — also capturing Perry’s pipes with eerie precision.
    — Jed Gottlieb, Boston Herald, 11 Nov. 2026
Definition of eerie
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
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.

Browse Nearby Words

spooking
spookish
spooks
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Spookish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spookish. Accessed 14 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

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

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

The Words of the Week - Nov. 13

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
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
speech-bubble-untangle
Simplify The Convoluted Expression Quiz A quiz that’s as “uncomplicated as a round de...
See All