haunting

1 of 3

noun

haunt·​ing ˈhȯn-tiŋ 

ˈhän-

plural hauntings

: an act of haunting

especially : visitation or inhabitation by a ghost

… its early history is replete with drama: duels, murders, shipwrecks, … even ghostly hauntings.

—Sally Gibson

When asked about hauntings on Tuesday's tour, [Albert] Walavich said he knew he would get a question about ghosts on Halloween, but he doesn't believe any haunt the grounds.

—Taylor Hartz

haunting

2 of 3

adjective

: having qualities (such as sadness or beauty) that linger in the memory : not easily forgotten

a haunting melody

haunting images

… pale, branchless tree trunks with a haunting, Georgia O'Keeffe quality …

—Susannah Master

haunting

3 of 3

present participle of haunt entry 1

Synonyms

Adjective

• creepy
• eerie
• eery
• spookish
• spooky
• uncanny
• unearthly
• weird

Examples of haunting in a Sentence

Adjective

the haunting tones of the Highland bagpipes

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The season moves slowly, but altogether Archive 81 makes for a melancholy and macabre investigation of history as a haunting. —Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2024

As the supernatural threat escalates, Chuck must locate Foster’s former residence at the titular address to end the haunting. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 24 Oct. 2024

Adjective

Grunewald takes what could have been a forgettable crossover ‘evil team-up’ issue and crafts one of the most haunting mediations on extremism and vengeance. —Josh Weiss, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024

Zito's modus operandi is scalping women and attaching their hair to mannequins, which probably has nothing to do with his mommy issues... Tom Savini truly works his magic in Maniac, and the special makeup effects are haunting, but the film also gets a boost from a pair of genre heavy-hitters. —Steven Thrash, EW.com, 19 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, "frequenting a place, dwelling place," from haunten "to frequent, haunt entry 1" + -ing -ing entry 1

Adjective

from present participle of haunt entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1823, in the meaning defined above