adjective
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of or resembling a ghost; spectral
a ghostly face appeared at the window
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suggesting the presence of ghosts; eerie
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archaic of or relating to the soul or spirit
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ghostly
before 900; Middle English; Old English gāstlīc. See ghost, -ly
Explanation
Something ghostly looks or sounds like a ghost — strange and chilling. A ghostly figure appearing out of the fog can seem slightly unearthly. Distant, ghostly music sometimes echoes through an empty subway station, and ghostly voices can often be heard in stairwells or hallways, seeming to come from nowhere. Even your neighbor's glowing TV screen can appear ghostly on a dark night. The Old English root of ghostly is gastlic, which means "spiritual, holy, or not of the flesh," and also "supernatural."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Ghostly acrylic animals dissolve into the background of these pieces, as natural elements attached to the works’ surfaces—sheepskin, cotton, cowhide—obscure just enough of these creatures that it’s impossible to tell what species they are.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 27, 2026
Ghostly white plant forms modeled on extinct species might refer to race, or to climate catastrophe, or to the insatiable emptiness of our information age.
From New York Times • Jun. 15, 2023
Ghostly as they are, the shirts speak to the migrant and labor history of Chinatown communities across the United States.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 18, 2023
Ghostly content can provide that sort of comfort, said Thompson, who is also founding director of Syracuse University’s Center for Television and Popular Culture.
From Washington Post • Oct. 27, 2022
“Grab a bite of Ghostly Cotton Candy! Eat as much as you want! You’ll never get full!”
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
