haunted

[hawn-tid, hahn-]

adjective

1. inhabited or frequented by ghosts.

   a haunted castle.

2. preoccupied, as with an emotion, memory, or idea; obsessed.

   His haunted imagination gave him no peace.

3. disturbed; distressed; worried.

   Haunted by doubt he again turned to law books on the subject.

haunted

/ ˈhɔːntɪd /

adjective

1. frequented or visited by ghosts

2. (postpositive) obsessed or worried

Other Word Forms

• unhaunted adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of haunted¹

Middle English word dating back to 1275–1325; haunt, -ed ²

Example Sentences

The piano-black plastic material on the console and around door switches might actually be haunted; fingerprints appear mysteriously overnight.

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The same stigma concern has long haunted a different Fed lending tool, the discount window, because it is sometimes used by banks facing crises.

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For other Chechen women who have fled, Aishat's death has reinvigorated a fear that has haunted them since they left Russia.

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Ardvrek is said to be haunted by the ghostly figure of a man, and a weeping woman.

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It was the face of a man whose crimes had haunted them, and he was finally being brought to justice.

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Related Words

• obsessed