specter

especially British, spec·tre

[spek-ter]

noun

1. a visible incorporeal spirit, especially one of a terrifying nature; ghost; phantom; apparition.

   Synonyms: shade

2. some object or source of terror or dread.

   the specter of disease or famine.

Word History and Origins

Origin of specter¹

First recorded 1595–1605; from Latin spectrum “appearance, form”; spectrum

Synonym Study

See ghost.

Example Sentences

The fears that permeate “Good Boy,” however, increasingly rely on Indy moving about alone – such as peeking around a corner or following the specter of a dog long gone from this world.

Read more on Salon

Worst by far, for the journeyman performer, is the looming specter of AI-generated narration.

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Still, the specter of a bear attack, especially by a grizzly, is enough to make most hikers’ blood run cold.

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But the fear cast by the specters of taxation and modernization that continually threaten Downton, including in “The Grand Finale,” are just as terrifying to its residents as any ax-wielding ghost.

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The painful and hard specter of more violence to come has less to do with far-right or far-left than extreme fringe in either political direction.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• demon 
• shadow