incubus

[in-kyuh-buhs, ing-]

noun

plural

incubi, incubuses 

1. an imaginary demon or evil spirit supposed to descend upon sleeping persons, especially one fabled to have sexual intercourse with women during their sleep.

2. a nightmare.

3. something that weighs upon or oppresses one like a nightmare.

incubus

/ ˈɪnkjʊbəs /

noun

1. a demon believed in folklore to lie upon sleeping persons, esp to have sexual intercourse with sleeping women Compare succubus

2. something that oppresses, worries, or disturbs greatly, esp a nightmare or obsession

Word History and Origins

Origin of incubus¹

1175–1225; Middle English < Late Latin: a nightmare induced by such a demon, noun derivative of Latin incubāre to lie upon; incubate

Word History and Origins

Origin of incubus¹

C14: from Late Latin, from incubāre to lie upon; see _incubate

Example Sentences

Let’s pause here briefly to note that Immanuel is likely referencing incubi and succubi in her sermons.

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In similar spirit, Johnson found fresh depths of populist vulgarity when he spoke last June of pitchforking the EU incubus off the nation’s back.

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All so they can keep expanding, squatting over lives like feudal incubi.

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The woman — girl, really — was physically tiny, not to mention inappropriately dressed for the task of extracting this colossal incubus, this 10-ton Minotaur, from the fourth floor.

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For decades, poorly justified scientific fears of future warming have hovered as an incubus over U.S. energy development.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal