spectre

US specter

/ (ˈspɛktə) /

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noun

a ghost; phantom; apparition

a mental image of something unpleasant or menacingthe spectre of redundancy

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Word Origin for spectre

C17: from Latin spectrum, from specere to look at

Words nearby spectre

spectral line, spectral luminous efficiency, spectral series, spectral type, spectra yellow, spectre, spectrin, spectro-, spectrobolometer, spectrochemical, spectrochemistry

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

How to use spectre in a sentence

Craig is signed on for just one more Bond flick after Spectre.
Exclusive: Sony Emails Reveal Studio Head Wants Idris Elba For the Next James Bond|William Boot|December 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A spectre is haunting the internet—the spectre of Open Sarcasm.
The Rise and Fall of the Infamous SarcMark|Keith Houston|September 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Nonetheless, it would have been better if the Supreme Court had not raised this spectre by halting the process.
What if the Supreme Court Had Declined to Hear Bush v. Gore?|Megan McArdle|April 29, 2013|DAILY BEAST
A specter is haunting the world,” they chant, echoing the first sentence of the Communist Manifesto: “The spectre of capitalism.
In ‘Cosmopolis,’ Robert Pattinson Depicts Financial World Gone Mad|Alex Klein|August 22, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Alone Orlean lay trying vainly to forget something—something that stood like a spectre before her eyes.
The Homesteader|Oscar Micheaux
And when he did leave the dismal scene of this last act of his miseries, it was like the spectre of the man who had entered it.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter
Besides, there was the ever unceasing grizzly spectre of poverty dangling before Jessie's eyes.
The Weight of the Crown|Fred M. White
A thing purple and dripping with blood—ghastly—unthinkable—monstrous—a spectre of nightmare dreams!
Love's Pilgrimage|Upton Sinclair
As a public force he was no longer a human being at all—he was a deformity, a spectre conjured up to bring fright to the beholder.
Love's Pilgrimage|Upton Sinclair