variants
or spectre
as in haunt
the soul of a dead person thought of especially as appearing to living people
feeling so terrified that every shadow became a specter
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of specter
The specter of hostage-taking is not new in Israel, although it has mostly been confined to soldiers.
—
Dina Kraft, The Christian Science Monitor, 22 Jan. 2025
David survives and is cursed to become the new beast while Jack is murdered and appears as a specter to David as a decaying corpse.
—Tim Lammers, Forbes, 15 Jan. 2025
Dominating the discussions — on stage and in the convention hall — were the specter of tariffs, the disconnect between the state of the U.S. economy and consumer sentiment, and the growing impact of generative AI.
—David Moin, WWD, 14 Jan. 2025
Shares of major tech companies were under pressure again on Monday, as the specter of higher inflation drove up Treasury yields and dented the outlook for possible Federal Reserve rate cuts later this year.
—Fred Imbert, CNBC, 13 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for specter 
Dina Kraft, The Christian Science Monitor, 22 Jan. 2025
David survives and is cursed to become the new beast while Jack is murdered and appears as a specter to David as a decaying corpse.
—Tim Lammers, Forbes, 15 Jan. 2025
Dominating the discussions — on stage and in the convention hall — were the specter of tariffs, the disconnect between the state of the U.S. economy and consumer sentiment, and the growing impact of generative AI.
—David Moin, WWD, 14 Jan. 2025
Shares of major tech companies were under pressure again on Monday, as the specter of higher inflation drove up Treasury yields and dented the outlook for possible Federal Reserve rate cuts later this year.
—Fred Imbert, CNBC, 13 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for specter
Recent Examples of Synonyms for specter
Noun
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Essay The Sad Lives of Famous Ghosts Emily Fraser Not everyone's lucky enough to escape their haunts.—
Max Ufberg,
hazlitt.net,
4 Jan. 2025
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But the real winner is the Haunted Mansion Parlor that fully immerses honorary happy haunts in the atmosphere of the Haunted Mansion ride.—
Jen Juneau,
People.com,
12 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Weathered homes built in Colonial Revival, Tudor Revival, Craftsman Bungalow, and Queen Anne styles line Hemphill like ghosts from a thriving era.—
Richard J. Gonzales,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
1 Feb. 2025
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Cheesecake, like most teen-agers, likes to sleep a lot—Somma compared her to a cat in this regard—and she can often be found beneath a blanket in her comfortable glass-and-steel enclosure in the main house, impersonating a ghost.—
Gary Shteyngart,
The New Yorker,
27 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Punxsutawney Phil woke up on Sunday and saw his shadow, meaning we are destined for six more weeks of winter, according to legend.—
Jon Haworth,
ABC News,
2 Feb. 2025
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Phil saw his shadow, predicting winter weather will stick around for six more weeks, like piles of old snow.—
Bill Chappell,
NPR,
2 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Agatha is also being pursued by her ex, Rio Vidal (Aubrey Plaza), a powerful green witch, as well as the Salem Seven, vengeful wraiths of Agatha's first coven.—
Ars Technica,
Ars Technica,
24 Dec. 2024
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Many slide hopelessly back into lives as nearly invisible wraiths, measured in the intervals between fixes — and arrests.—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
Orlando Sentinel,
16 Dec. 2024
Noun
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But some analysts are worried investors might be cheering a mere phantom.—
Yeo Boon Ping,
CNBC,
27 Jan. 2025
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On Friday, a team of researchers argued that the fish was a phantom all along.—
Jason Nark,
New York Times,
3 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Brandon and his cohorts are essentially white-collar espionage spooks, trafficking in all-in-a-day’s-work deceit punctuated by violence.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
30 Dec. 2024
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But that didn’t stop Joe Barton, creator of Black Doves, the Netflix Christmas spy thriller now streaming, from encumbering star Keira Knightley as dedicated wife and professional spook Helen Webb with Ben Whishaw‘s Sam Young, a fellow spy and assassin, in all matters of love and relationships.—
Etan Vlessing,
The Hollywood Reporter,
6 Dec. 2024
Noun
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There’s a kind of Gothic quality to the apparitions, calling to mind Edward Gorey figures, but all smeared and melted and smudged.—
Alissa Wilkinson,
New York Times,
2 Jan. 2025
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There have been no sightings, no fleeting apparitions.—
David Ornstein,
The Athletic,
6 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near specter
Cite this Entry
“Specter.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/specter. Accessed 6 Feb. 2025.
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