1
as in excitable
easily excited by nature
a spooky horse shying at shadows
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in eerie
fearfully and mysteriously strange or fantastic
a spooky tale of strange hauntings and mysterious reincarnations
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of spooky
This year's buckets are a cute (and definitely not spooky) array of Halloween friends, including a friendly ghost, a black cat, the iconic jack-o'-lantern, a not-too-scary red zombie, and a green monster that would make Frankenstein proud.
—
Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 7 Oct. 2025
Not all Halloween outdoor pumpkin decor is spooky!
—Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 Oct. 2025
Last year, Kardashians decorations took a spookier turn, with the reality star’s house being decorated with creepy floating ghosts, witches brooms and piles of pumpkins in shades of traditional orange — plus green, white and hues of brown — and covered in sprawling vines.
—Kirsty Hatcher, PEOPLE, 6 Oct. 2025
The spookiest season of the year is here, and nothing sets the mood for Halloween quite like a good scare.
—Caitlin White, Variety, 3 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spooky
Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 7 Oct. 2025
Not all Halloween outdoor pumpkin decor is spooky!
—Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 Oct. 2025
Last year, Kardashians decorations took a spookier turn, with the reality star’s house being decorated with creepy floating ghosts, witches brooms and piles of pumpkins in shades of traditional orange — plus green, white and hues of brown — and covered in sprawling vines.
—Kirsty Hatcher, PEOPLE, 6 Oct. 2025
The spookiest season of the year is here, and nothing sets the mood for Halloween quite like a good scare.
—Caitlin White, Variety, 3 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spooky
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spooky
Adjective
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The text is excitable and wayward, while many of the photographs are dramatically dull.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
16 Oct. 2025
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Pups with excitable and reactive temperaments were especially responsive to on-screen content, suggesting that many canines may interpret moving images much like real-world events.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The proposal was an eerie echo of a practice adopted in 1950, as McCarthyism took hold.—
Time,
Time,
20 Oct. 2025
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This Stephen King adaptation stars Thomas Jane, Marcia Gay Harden and Andre Braugher and tells the story of a small group of people in Bridgton, Maine who meet in a supermarket to find supplies after a thunderstorm and start to notice an eerie mist cloaking the presence of monsters among them.—
Emma Specter,
Vogue,
19 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Although Buffalo has allowed just 47 points in its last two games (both losses), the Chiefs offense has people nervous.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
23 Oct. 2025
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Not only are recent graduates nervous that their jobs could be replaced by AI, the application process is also becoming disrupted by the tools.—
Jessica Coacci,
Fortune,
23 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The truth can be far more haunting than any scary story.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
22 Oct. 2025
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Max Schreck’s uncanny performance and makeup design were absolutely mesmerizing, as was the film’s unparalleled haunting atmosphere, made all the more palpable by the grainy 16mm transfer to VHS.—
Robert Eggers,
HollywoodReporter,
17 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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This handsome pup make Jeoseung saja Jinu look more cuddly than creepy.—
Kelli Bender,
PEOPLE,
19 Oct. 2025
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The Ring is horrifying, but the Japanese original is even creepier on a deep psychological level.—
Emma Specter,
Vogue,
19 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spooky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spooky. Accessed 27 Oct. 2025.
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