as in imaginary
not real and existing only in the imagination
the company claimed that the only hazards involving its product were the phantom dangers created by consumer groups
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in ghost
the soul of a dead person thought of especially as appearing to living people
Halloween is supposed to be a time when phantoms return to walk among us
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of phantom
Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024
Callahan’s vocals shine through with authority, sitting nicely in the phantom center channel.
—PCMAG, 17 Dec. 2024
George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Jan. 2025
This character is essentially a phantom to you until the very end of Elden Ring.
—Ashley Bardhan, Vulture, 17 June 2024
See All Example Sentences for phantom
Adjective
This sneering put-down is even more bizarre than the swipe at Carter’s phantom operatic output.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024
Callahan’s vocals shine through with authority, sitting nicely in the phantom center channel.
—PCMAG, 17 Dec. 2024
Noun
Listen to this article San Diego Symphony organ curator Bob Knight will never be mistaken for the phantom of the opera.
—George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Jan. 2025
This character is essentially a phantom to you until the very end of Elden Ring.
—Ashley Bardhan, Vulture, 17 June 2024
See All Example Sentences for phantom
Recent Examples of Synonyms for phantom
Adjective
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That’s when Cora fired up some kind of imaginary jukebox inside his head and proceeded to dance the day away.—
Steve Buckley,
The Athletic,
16 Feb. 2025
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Gradually, an imaginary narrative for the property took shape.—
Blaine Davis,
New York Times,
11 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
In the epic fifth and final season, Joe Goldberg returns to New York to enjoy his happily ever after… until his perfect life is threatened by the ghosts of his past and his own dark desires.—
Samantha Bergeson,
IndieWire,
25 Feb. 2025
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In addition to Neftalí and her bandmates, there is her mother, who appears as a ghost, and her mother’s former lover Bettina, who helped instill Neftalí’s love of books.—
David L. Ulin,
The Atlantic,
21 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Created by Chris Romano and Eric Falconer, who also are believed to be back for the sequel, Blue Mountain State is about a fictitious university, Blue Mountain State, and its football team, the Mountain Goats.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
17 Feb. 2025
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Last month, its editor revealed that A.I. had been used to tweak the Hungarian accents of its stars, Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones, and to create fictitious architectural plans and buildings for the closing retrospective of the main character’s career.—
Michael Schulman,
The New Yorker,
6 Feb. 2025
Noun
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An iconic apex predator appeared through thick fog like an apparition and cautiously watched a photographer in Yellowstone National Park, stunning video shows.—
Brooke Baitinger,
Idaho Statesman,
12 Feb. 2025
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Narrow beams of sunlight illuminate the torched frame of a single chair – like an apparition of the torturer who once stood there.—
Scott Peterson,
The Christian Science Monitor,
31 Jan. 2025
Noun
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So something to the spirit of that is really speaking to me.—
David Kinne,
EW.com,
24 Feb. 2025
-
However nebulous, these extravagant plans signal a spirit of collaboration.—
Kyle Chayka,
The New Yorker,
26 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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So much so in fact, that echoes of that mythical landscape unexpectedly exist today outside a town three hours due north of Melbourne, Australia.—
Natalie Hoberman,
Forbes,
22 Feb. 2025
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Universal took to its official social media accounts to release the first photo from the film, which shows Matt Damon in costume as Odysseus, the mythical Greek hero who spends a decade trying to return home after fighting in the Trojan War.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
17 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Originally a spinoff of the NBC sitcom, A Different World first centered on Denise’s life as an undergrad at Hillman College, a fictional historically Black college in Virginia.—
Emily Krauser,
People.com,
23 Feb. 2025
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Faizon is perhaps best known for playing the manager of fictional department store Gimbels in 2003's Elf.—
Wesley Stenzel,
EW.com,
22 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Phantom.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/phantom. Accessed 1 Mar. 2025.
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