phantasmagoric

American  

[fan-taz-muh-gawr-ik, -gor-] / fænˌtæz məˈgɔr ɪk, -ˈgɒr- /

Also phantasmagorical sometimes phantasmagorial

adjective

1. having a fantastic or deceptive appearance, as something in a dream or created by the imagination.

2. having the appearance of an optical illusion, especially one produced by a magic lantern.

3. changing or shifting, as a scene made up of many elements.

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Other Word Forms

• phantasmagorially
  adverb
• phantasmagorianly
  adverb
• phantasmagorically
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of phantasmagoric

First recorded in 1800–10; phantasmagor(ia) ( def. ) + -ic ( def. )

Explanation

Something phantasmagoric features wild and shifting images, colorful patterns that are continually moving and changing. The Greek word phantasma, meaning "image," is the ancestor of phantasmagoric, a word you can use to describe anything so weird it doesn't seem real. In the 1960's, the word was linked with psychedelic drugs that created illusions. This word can definitely apply to a movie with bizarre images, quickly changing scenes, and colors and music that are disorienting. If a romantic comedy suddenly includes werewolves and killer robots, it just became phantasmagoric. Anything phantasmagoric is extremely weird.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

phantasmagoric

Its bright orange shade looked almost neon against the phantasmagoric roses bursting from the carpeting and wallpaper—every inch of this underworld custom-calibrated for a blindingly colorful ride.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 9, 2026

Brennan: Your mention of Dylan brings us to terrain I’m better equipped to handle than a case of epididymitis run amok: The film’s phantasmagoric dogpile of cinematic, cultural and political points of reference.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 19, 2023

Much that occurs is slightly phantasmagoric, resulting in a story of psychological disorientation as well as physical threat.

From Washington Post ● Jan. 27, 2023

Its roof is supported by a phantasmagoric pair of giant concrete “trees” with swelling trunks and thick branches, the surreal forms contradicting the otherwise right-angled, Modernist structure.

From New York Times ● Dec. 29, 2022

A haunting persuasion of the phantasmagoric character of all sounds that saluted her ears, all sights that met her eyes, possessed her.

From The History of Sir Richard Calmady A Romance by Lucas Malet