as in haunting
of, relating to, or suggestive of a ghost
They spotted a spectral figure in the window of the old abandoned house.
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of spectral
The notorious artist is a spectral presence — the book’s beating heart is its narrator and her relationships with her mother, mother’s boyfriend, and fellow typist Shelley, as well as her relationship with the culture around her.
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Tomi Obaro, Vulture, 21 Nov. 2024
And what did the reunion tour with Liz Cheney and her evil father’s spectral presence accomplish, other than alienating everyone but a sliver of self-congratulatory consultants and pundits eager to flaunt their bipartisan commitments in the most obscene way possible?
—Seyward Darby, Longreads, 7 Nov. 2024
Recent free updates for No Man's Sky include Aquarius, which released in September and brought fishing, a new area, new expeditions and new items to the game; and Cursed, released in October, which introduced spectral anomalies, a new threat and blurs reality in the gameplay.
—Felecia Wellington Radel, USA TODAY, 5 Nov. 2024
Sounding curiously spectral, the group is an essentially trippy element in the psychedelic swirl.
—Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Vulture, 8 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for spectral 
Tomi Obaro, Vulture, 21 Nov. 2024
And what did the reunion tour with Liz Cheney and her evil father’s spectral presence accomplish, other than alienating everyone but a sliver of self-congratulatory consultants and pundits eager to flaunt their bipartisan commitments in the most obscene way possible?
—Seyward Darby, Longreads, 7 Nov. 2024
Recent free updates for No Man's Sky include Aquarius, which released in September and brought fishing, a new area, new expeditions and new items to the game; and Cursed, released in October, which introduced spectral anomalies, a new threat and blurs reality in the gameplay.
—Felecia Wellington Radel, USA TODAY, 5 Nov. 2024
Sounding curiously spectral, the group is an essentially trippy element in the psychedelic swirl.
—Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Vulture, 8 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for spectral
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spectral
Adjective
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The final scene is as haunting as anything in movies this year.Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 11 Dec. 2024
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Combined with some of Cockle’s stunning photographs, the result is haunting.Carolyn Wells, Longreads, 6 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The Emmy-winning screenwriter and producer, who died in 1975, headed the acclaimed TV series, which aired on CBS from 1959 to 1964, as well as its many memorable, and eerie, episodes.Carly Tagen-Dye, People.com, 13 Dec. 2024
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Eyewitness reports, social media videos and officials confirm the drones are up to 6 feet in diameter, can quickly go from emitting eerie lights to no light at all and often avoid detection.Sophia Pargas, NBC News, 12 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The art direction helps maintain the creepy tension, making a bubbling pot of pumpkin soup look sinister and the click of staccato heels sound menacing.Joan MacDonald, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
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Instead of petals shaped like a sweet white dog, Gulley got an array of flowers with creepy eyes peeking out; think less canine, more catastrophe.Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 12 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The phantom costs of legacy software and the gains to be made from modernization usually more than cover the costs of sticking with an outdated status quo.Eric Bernstein, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024
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The Ravens then saw their first drive wiped out by a phantom leg whip call against fullback Patrick Ricard.Baltimore Sun staff, Baltimore Sun, 26 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Bits were acute — the repeat of the first-movement exposition returned to the material with a ghostlier sheen — but full movements lacked through-lines of energy, focus and poignancy; the climaxes didn’t feel earned.Zachary Woolfe, New York Times, 24 Nov. 2024
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Highway 101, located along Oregon’s Pacific Coast, holds a popular tale of a ghostly woman who vanished while driving near Cannon Beach many years ago.Paula Conway, Forbes, 9 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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Danny Boyle and Alex Garland are returning after 22 years to make 28 Years Later, though the original film, 28 Days Later, has remained one of cinema’s weirdest modern days stories.Paul Tassi, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024
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That was such a weird sensation—to just have paper towels stuffed deep in your skin.Julia Ries, SELF, 11 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Making a film that’s exciting, that’s scary in moments and deals with supernatural — there’s a ghost haunting these ideas.Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 19 Dec. 2024
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Happy whales strapped with barrels of coins, supernatural serpentine disco queens.Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 18 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near spectral
Cite this Entry
“Spectral.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spectral. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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