ghost

1 of 2

noun

plural ghosts
1
: the seat of life or intelligence : soul
give up the ghost
2
: a disembodied soul
especially : the soul of a dead person believed to be an inhabitant of the unseen world or to appear to the living in bodily likeness
3
4
a
: a faint shadowy trace
a ghost of a smile
b
: the least bit
not a ghost of a chance
5
: a false image in a photographic negative or on a television screen caused especially by reflection
6
: one who ghostwrites
7
: a red blood cell that has lost its hemoglobin
ghostlike adjective
ghosty adjective

ghost

2 of 2

verb

ghosted; ghosting; ghosts

transitive verb

1
: to haunt like a ghost
2
: ghostwrite
ghosted the mayor's autobiography
3
informal : to cut off all contact with (someone) abruptly and usually without explanation : to subject (someone, such as a former romantic partner) to ghosting see ghosting sense 2
No one wants to be ghosted, mostly because it sucks to admit that the person you gushed about last week is now pretending you don't exist …Ellen Scott

intransitive verb

1
a
: to move silently like a ghost
b
: to sail quietly in light winds
2

Examples of ghost in a Sentence

Noun a house haunted by ghosts looked for ghosts in the graveyard on Halloween Verb She ghosted the mayor's autobiography.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
According to Taiwanese rural folklore, figures spotted in yellow coats in the mountainous forests are not human, but ghosts who seek to lead the living astray. Patrick Frater, Variety, 5 Nov. 2024 That night, Elizabeth’s ghost possesses Jill to speak to Jack. Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 Nov. 2024
Verb
The fading of the bezel insert tends to send some collectors head-over-heals if it’s especially ghosted (sun bleached), while excessive case polishing (which was common in the five-digit era) will drive prices downward. Allen Farmelo, Robb Report, 5 Sep. 2024 Sending the text will feel bad, but ghosting allows uncertainty to linger. Aditi Shrikant, CNBC, 31 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for ghost 

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English gost, gast, from Old English gāst; akin to Old High German geist spirit, Sanskrit heḍa anger

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

circa 1616, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of ghost was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near ghost

Cite this Entry

“Ghost.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ghost. Accessed 24 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

ghost

1 of 2 noun
ˈgōst
: the soul of a dead person thought of as living in an unseen world or as appearing to living people

ghost

2 of 2 verb
ghosted; ghosting
1
: to haunt like a ghost
2
3
informal : to cut off contact with (someone) abruptly and usually without explanation

Medical Definition

ghost

noun
: a structure (as a cell or tissue) that does not stain normally because of degenerative changes
specifically : a red blood cell that has lost its hemoglobin

More from Merriam-Webster on ghost

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