ghost
Americannoun
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ghosts
plural
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the soul of a dead person, a disembodied spirit imagined, usually as a vague, shadowy or evanescent form, as wandering among or haunting living persons.
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a mere shadow or semblance; a trace.
He's a ghost of his former self.
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a remote possibility.
He hasn't a ghost of a chance.
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(sometimes initial capital letter) a spiritual being.
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Informal. ghostwriter.
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a secondary image, especially one appearing on a television screen as a white shadow, caused by poor or double reception or by a defect in the receiver.
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Also called ghost image. Photography. a faint secondary or out-of-focus image in a photographic print or negative resulting from reflections within the camera lens.
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an oral word game in which each player in rotation adds a letter to those supplied by preceding players, the object being to avoid ending a word.
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Optics. a series of false spectral lines produced by a diffraction grating with unevenly spaced lines.
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Metalworking. a streak appearing on a freshly machined piece of steel containing impurities.
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a red blood cell having no hemoglobin.
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a fictitious employee, business, etc., fabricated especially for the purpose of manipulating funds or avoiding taxes.
Investigation showed a payroll full of ghosts.
verb (used with object)
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ghosts,
present (3rd person singular)
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ghosted,
past participle, past
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ghosting
present participle
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to ghostwrite (a book, speech, etc.).
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to haunt.
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Engraving. to lighten the background of (a photograph) before engraving.
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Informal.
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to suddenly end all contact with (a person) without explanation, especially in a romantic relationship.
The guy I’ve been dating ghosted me.
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to leave (a social event or gathering) suddenly without saying goodbye.
My friend ghosted my birthday party.
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Digital Technology. to remove (comments, threads, or other digital content) from a website or online forum without informing the poster, keeping them hidden from the public but still visible to the poster.
verb (used without object)
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ghosts,
present (3rd person singular)
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ghosted,
past participle, past
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ghosting
present participle
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to ghostwrite.
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to go about or move like a ghost.
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(of a sailing vessel) to move when there is no perceptible wind.
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to pay people for work not performed, especially as a way of manipulating funds.
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Informal.
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to suddenly end all contact with a person without explanation, especially in a romantic relationship.
They dated for a month and then she ghosted.
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to leave a social event or gathering suddenly without saying goodbye.
I'm getting tired so I think I might just ghost.
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Digital Technology. to remove comments, threads, or other digital content from a website or online forum without informing the poster, keeping them hidden from the public but still visible to the poster.
adjective
idioms
noun
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the disembodied spirit of a dead person, supposed to haunt the living as a pale or shadowy vision; phantom
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a haunting memory
the ghost of his former life rose up before him
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a faint trace or possibility of something; glimmer
a ghost of a smile
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the spirit; soul (archaic, except in the phrase the Holy Ghost )
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physics
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a faint secondary image produced by an optical system
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a similar image on a television screen, formed by reflection of the transmitting waves or by a defect in the receiver
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See ghost word
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Also called: ghost edition. an entry recorded in a bibliography of which no actual proof exists
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Another name for ghostwriter See ghostwrite
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(modifier) falsely recorded as doing a particular job or fulfilling a particular function in order that some benefit, esp money, may be obtained
a ghost worker
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to die
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(of a machine) to stop working
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verb
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See ghostwrite
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(tr) to haunt
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(intr) to move effortlessly and smoothly, esp unnoticed
he ghosted into the penalty area
Synonym Usage
Ghost, specter, spirit all refer to the disembodied soul of a person. A ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person, which appears or otherwise makes its presence known to the living: the ghost of a drowned child. A specter is a ghost or apparition of more or less weird, unearthly, or terrifying aspect: a frightening specter. Spirit is often interchangeable with ghost but may mean a supernatural being, usually with an indication of good or malign intent toward human beings: the spirit of a friend; an evil spirit.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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ghostsimple
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ghostssimple
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have ghostedperfect
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has ghostedperfect
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am ghostingprogressive
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are ghostingprogressive
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is ghostingprogressive
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have been ghostingperfect progressive
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has been ghostingperfect progressive
Past
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ghostedsimple
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had ghostedperfect
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was ghostingprogressive
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were ghostingprogressive
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had been ghostingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ghost
First recorded before 900; Middle English goost (noun), Old English gāst; cognate with German Geist spirit
Explanation
A ghost is the spirit of a person who's died. In most stories and myths, ghosts are pale, translucent, and wispy. Throughout history, the idea that a person's soul or spirit can remain visible after her death has been common. Some of us long to see the ghost of a loved relative, while others are terrified of the very idea. From this main idea, the word ghost has also come to mean the hint or shade of something: "The ghost of a smile remained on her lips." The Old English root is gast, "spirit," and also "breath."
Vocabulary lists containing ghost
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.
See Examples For:
San Diego County jumped into California’s sprawling ghost gun fight this week, suing a 3-D printing filament manufacturer it says hocks material for homespun firearms in violation of state law.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026
“But it was very different. I had the orphanage, I had the legend of the fetuses and a ghost; and I had the devil live in the monastery.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
An incinerator scheme to help clean up the ecological catastrophe turned out to be a vast multi-million-dollar scam that included a "ghost" incinerator for the capital Tirana that was never built.
From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026
In the same thread, though, came the rebuttal: there were good ghost kitchens.
From Salon ● Oct. 3, 2026
Today, though, with her mouth curved into a stiff upward bow and her eyes wide, she looked more like she was meeting a ghost.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
But the cultural fandom for ghosts is not as intense as it is for vampires.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
Under the "ghosts of predators past" hypothesis, pronghorns became exceptionally fast because they evolved alongside a cheetah-like predator capable of high-speed pursuit.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 8, 2026
Might someone sign the ghosts of the Four Horsemen of 1924?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
"Criminals are like ghosts," he said, in a low voice.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
He turned and saw, past the wall of ghosts, a police officer standing a few feet from him, arms folded with a familiar expression.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
Meanwhile, 52% of Gen Z daters have ghosted, blocked or unfollowed someone at least once to avoid paying them back after a date.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 25, 2026
"You're either getting ghosted or it's just like 'oh, sorry we've got a better candidate'," he said.
From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2026
“The other was for a retail position at a local Kohl’s, which ghosted me.”
From Slate ● Apr. 20, 2026
Drean picked up Ramos's crossfield kick in acres of space to score before Gailleton ghosted in for the final try.
From Barron's ● Feb. 22, 2026
Ivy couldn’t even hear her own footsteps as she ghosted over the sidewalk.
From "Ivy Aberdeen’s Letter to the World" by Ashley Herring Blake
“The ghosting thing is a very real problem,” he said — adding that hasn’t seen any evidence that a cover letter improves the chances of a response for GigHQ users.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 15, 2026
I matched with a Glen Powell type again, 10 years after ghosting him.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2026
But in 2026, not a single Hollywood blockbuster is programmed there, raising questions about why US studios are ghosting the event.
From Barron's ● May 11, 2026
The social fallout can be tough, with the heaviest bettors sometimes ghosting friends entirely.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 9, 2026
“Thought you were ghosting for a second,” Arthur says.
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
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.
