haunt
Americanverb (used with object)
-
haunts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
haunted,
past participle, past
-
haunting
present participle
-
to visit habitually or appear to frequently as a spirit or ghost.
to haunt a house; to haunt a person.
-
to recur persistently to the consciousness of; remain with.
Memories of love haunted him.
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to visit frequently; go to often.
He haunted the galleries and bars that the artists went to.
- Synonyms:
- frequent
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to frequent the company of; be often with.
He haunted famous men, hoping to gain celebrity for himself.
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to disturb or distress; cause to have anxiety; trouble; worry.
His youthful escapades came back to haunt him.
verb (used without object)
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haunts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
haunted,
past participle, past
-
haunting
present participle
-
to reappear continually as a spirit or ghost.
-
to visit habitually or regularly.
-
to remain persistently; loiter; stay; linger.
noun
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haunts
plural
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Often haunts. a place frequently visited.
to return to one's old haunts.
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Chiefly Midland and Southern U.S. and North England. a ghost.
verb
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to visit (a person or place) in the form of a ghost
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(tr) to intrude upon or recur to (the memory, thoughts, etc)
he was haunted by the fear of insanity
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to visit (a place) frequently
-
to associate with (someone) frequently
noun
-
(often plural) a place visited frequently
an old haunt of hers
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a place to which animals habitually resort for food, drink, shelter, etc
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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hauntsimple
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hauntssimple
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have hauntedperfect
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has hauntedperfect
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am hauntingprogressive
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are hauntingprogressive
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is hauntingprogressive
-
have been hauntingperfect progressive
-
has been hauntingperfect progressive
Past
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hauntedsimple
-
had hauntedperfect
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was hauntingprogressive
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were hauntingprogressive
-
had been hauntingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of haunt
1200–50; Middle English haunten < Old French hanter to frequent, probably < Old Norse heimta to lead home, derivative of heim homewards; see home
Explanation
The verb to haunt means to appear as a ghost or some kind of supernatural phenomenon. Ebenezer Scrooge was haunted by the Ghosts of Christmases Past, Present and Future. The first recorded usage of the word haunt is in William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a play filled with supernatural characters running around scaring the knickers off each other. As Shakespeare knew, haunting is at its most effective in the passive voice, because there is much more drama in being haunted than haunting. Another use of the word haunt is as a noun, and it means "a place that is frequented often," like a popular hangout. The gym, a bar, a corner: these are all potential haunts. The dentist, the principal’s office, a busy intersection: these are not.
Vocabulary lists containing haunt
The Grim Reader: Wicked Words of Grave Importance for Halloween
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act I
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Uncanny, Creepy, or Downright Scary: Words For Halloween
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
But this time, they came back to haunt him and he was arrested in September 2023.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
The eight-pitch leadoff walk he issued came back to haunt him when, with one out, in a 2-2 count, he missed his spot on a slider to Waldschmidt.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
Spider-Man finds time to haunt MJ’s Instagram stories amidst all manner of chaos breaking out in the streets of New York and beyond?
From Salon ● Aug. 3, 2026
Ms Mullan said she tried to save her family and that night would haunt her forever.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
Merle had received his doctorate from Johns Hopkins University and been ensconced for two years at the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, Swann’s former haunt.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
Many of the city's old storied haunts are closed.
From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026
Also read: ‘Day-to-day dread’ haunts frustrated job seekers in era of low hiring.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
"It haunts myself as the senior investigating officer, and I think that comes down to the fact that Suzy's never been found," she said.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
But it’s Big Baby, a crayon-tattooed, life-size enforcer in “Toy Story 3,” that still haunts me.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
It is inescapable around here, and it has long since mingled with the taste of multicolored chalk dust that still haunts me from third grade.
From "A Mango-Shaped Space" by Wendy Mass
“The Samurai and the Prisoner” contains no scares but is suitably haunted.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
Japan is haunted by the memory of a massive 9.0-magnitude undersea quake in 2011, which triggered a tsunami that killed or left missing around 18,500 people and wrecked the Fukushima nuclear plant.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
But for a sport haunted by its own history, the antidoping show of force was designed to breed confidence not doubt.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
In his retelling of Homer’s epic poem, Nolan imagines Odysseus as a man haunted by the sacking of Troy.
From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026
In talking to Aunt Rose’s husband, Ophie was reminded that it wasn’t places that ghosts haunted, but people.
From "Ophie's Ghosts" by Justina Ireland
This poses a haunting dilemma for those in the capital.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
Sombert and Youskevitch rendezvous for a haunting, lamplit pas de deux.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
The director became emblematic of two of J-horror’s most haunting achievements, ‘Cure’ and ‘Pulse.’
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
Common to much of the user-generated content are eerie images and haunting stories of mysterious, yellow wallpapered corridors and empty office-like spaces that exist outside of, or beyond, reality itself.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 26, 2026
The haunting, discordant song was getting louder, mingled with the crack and snap of footsteps.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
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.
