wood spirit
Americannoun
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(especially in folklore) a supernatural, incorporeal being believed to inhabit the forest.
noun
Etymology
Origin of wood spirit
First recorded in 1835–45
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.
“I’ve got a crystal ball, and I’ve got a wood spirit hanging in my office,” head coach Mike Zimmer said.
From Washington Times ● Jan. 1, 2018
She moved through the trees as quickly as a wood spirit.
From "The Whipping Boy" by Sid Fleischman
They are mostly solid, glassy-looking substances insoluble in water, but soluble in alcohol and wood spirit.
From The Chemistry of Hat Manufacturing Lectures Delivered Before the Hat Manufacturers' Association by Shonk, Albert
It may be that this, like the others, was not the devil at all, but some poor wood spirit whose cloven feet had got him into trouble.
From The Celtic Twilight by Yeats, W. B. (William Butler)
The former, wood spirit, is obtained in an impure state by distilling wood; it is used to dissolve resins, fats, oils, etc., and to make aniline.
From An Introduction to Chemical Science by Williams, Rufus Phillips
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.
