vampire
a preternatural being, commonly believed to be a reanimated corpse, that is said to suck the blood of sleeping persons at night.
(in Eastern European folklore) a corpse, animated by an undeparted soul or demon, that periodically leaves the grave and disturbs the living, until it is exhumed and impaled or burned.
a person who preys ruthlessly upon others; extortionist.
a woman who unscrupulously exploits, ruins, or degrades the men she seduces.
an actress noted for her roles as an unscrupulous seductress: the vampires of the silent movies.
Origin of vampire
1Other words from vampire
- vam·pir·ic [vam-pir-ik], /væmˈpɪr ɪk/, vam·pir·ish [vam-pahyuhr-ish], /ˈvæm paɪər ɪʃ/, adjective
Words Nearby vampire
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use vampire in a sentence
What We Do in the Shadows is basically just that, but with vampires.
The New Class of Comfort TV: 16 Shows to Watch When You Run Out of Friends and The Office | Eliana Dockterman | February 10, 2021 | TimeShe describes food-sharing patterns in hunter-gatherer societies, for instance, then in the same paragraph says that “this same dynamic exists among vampire bats.”
In the animal kingdom, rituals that connect, renew and heal | Barbara King | January 22, 2021 | Washington PostMy other horror recommendation is “Let the Right One In,” the vampire novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist.
The perfect science fiction, fantasy and genre-bending tales for the chilly days ahead | Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Lavie Tidhar | December 18, 2020 | Washington PostTo parasitic-plant specialist Chris Thorogood, “They’re vampire plants.”
‘Vampire’ parasite challenges the definition of a plant | Susan Milius | September 16, 2020 | Science News For StudentsThe classic movie still offers some chills and established many of the visual motifs seen in contemporary vampire movies.
Mistletoe is basically a vampire—but one of those an anti-hero type vampires.
The vampire at the heart of A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night neither sparkles nor sleeps in coffins.
The Punk Behind Iran's Only Vampire Spaghetti Western-Style Love Story | Melissa Leon | November 21, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAnd someone named something like, “vampire Man Randy,” commented on it and wrote, “sex feet.”
How Aidy Bryant Stealthily Became Your Favorite ‘Saturday Night Live’ Star | Kevin Fallon | October 31, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTNext door in Romania, a historical figure nicknamed Vlad the Impaler inspired the first mainstream depiction of a vampire.
He is believed to have been considered a vampire in the mid-19th century and decapitated after his death.
Even the air has its strange denizens in the guise of huge beetles and vampire-winged flying foxes.
The Red Year | Louis TracyDid you ever know a man come out to do either in a chariot and pair, you ridiculous old vampire?
Oliver Twist, Vol. II (of 3) | Charles DickensAnd as the narrowing process progressed, she said, the exhausting or vampire quality grew and grew.
The Daughters of Danaus | Mona CairdTo gently destroy, sucking the vitality like a vampire and fanning the victim to dullness with its wings.
The Beach of Dreams | H. De Vere StacpooleThe two bones are not often found in so lateral a position, and the vampire wings are clumsy in the extreme.
In Search Of Gravestones Old And Curious | W.T. (William Thomas) Vincent
British Dictionary definitions for vampire
/ (ˈvæmpaɪə) /
(in European folklore) a corpse that rises nightly from its grave to drink the blood of the living
See vampire bat
a person who preys mercilessly upon others, such as a blackmailer
See vamp 1 (def. 1)
theatre a trapdoor on a stage
Origin of vampire
1Derived forms of vampire
- vampiric (væmˈpɪrɪk) or vampirish, adjective
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
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