specter

noun

spec·​ter ˈspek-tər 

variants or spectre

1

: a visible disembodied spirit : ghost

2

: something that haunts or perturbs the mind : phantasm

the specter of hunger

Synonyms

• apparition
• bogey
• bogie
• bogy
• familiar spirit
• ghost
• hant [dialect]
• haunt [chiefly dialect]
• materialization
• phantasm
• fantasm
• phantom
• poltergeist
• shade
• shadow
• spirit
• spook
• sprite
• vision
• visitant
• wraith

Examples of specter in a Sentence

feeling so terrified that every shadow became a specter

Recent Examples on the Web

Joe Carollo spent decades earning his reputation as a political brawler, clashing with Miami bureaucrats and raising the specter of leftist politics and communist ties to get his way. —Douglas Hanks, Miami Herald, 30 May 2025

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev raised the specter of a World War III on Tuesday as the rhetoric between the White House and the Kremlin over the war in Ukraine ramped up. —Astha Rajvanshi, NBC news, 28 May 2025

Vogue recently spoke to Walker about letting Tom Wolfe guide her expectations of present-day digital media, her favorite blog she’s ever written, the ghostly specter of the girlboss, and attempting to resist universalizing in her writing. —Emma Specter, Vogue, 22 May 2025

But the specter of A.I. misuse, and the imperfect systems used to root it out, may also be affecting students who are following the rules. —Callie Holtermann, New York Times, 17 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

French spectre, from Latin spectrum appearance, specter, from specere to look, look at — more at spy

First Known Use

1605, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing specter

• raised the specter of
• the specter of (something)

Rhymes for specter

• hector
• lector
• nectar
• rector
• sector
• spectre
• vector
• bisector
• collector
• connector
• corrector
• defector

Kids Definition

specter

noun

spec·​ter

variants or spectre

ˈspek-tər 

1

: ghost

2

: something that bothers the mind