ghoulish
Americanadjective
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strangely diabolical or cruel; monstrous.
a ghoulish and questionable sense of humor.
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showing fascination with death, disease, maiming, etc.; morbid.
ghoulish curiosity.
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of, relating to, or like a ghoul or ghouls.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ghoulish
Explanation
Ghoulish things are scary or morbid. A ghoulish sense of humor favors jokes about death and gore. An interest in other people's misfortune could be called ghoulish, and so could a fascination with deadly car accidents or plane crashes. The horrified feeling you might get when you think about death is the essence of something ghoulish. This adjective comes from ghoul, "an evil spirit," from the Arabic ġūl, a mythological corpse-eating demon.
Vocabulary lists containing ghoulish
Mardi Gras: Faith
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"The Witches" by Roald Dahl, Chapters 6–11
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The Suffix -ish, Part 3
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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.
Robin Denselow Poly Styrene Ghoulish With a shimmering guitar riff reminiscent of the Passions' classic I'm in Love With a German Film Star, this is transcendentally lovely stuff from the former X-Ray Spex singer.
From The Guardian • Apr. 7, 2011
Ghoulish as the procedure sounds, some patients prefer the idea of using their own blood, rather than a neurotoxin or synthetic filler, to rejuvenate their faces.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 3, 2011
Ghoulish as the procedure sounds, some patients prefer the idea of using their own blood rather than a neurotoxin or synthetic filler to rejuvenate their faces.
From New York Times • Mar. 2, 2011
Ghoulish parasites, uncanny saprophytes, for their matted roots prey either on the juices of living plants or on the decaying matter of dead ones, how weirdly beautiful and decorative, they are!
From Wild Flowers An Aid to Knowledge of Our Wild Flowers and Their Insect Visitors by Blanchan, Neltje
Ghoulish Glee," Bucyrus, O., writes: "For two years I have been sending a copy of my paper, the 'Palladium and Observer' to President Cleveland.
From Cordwood by Nye, Bill
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.
