ghoul

noun

ˈgül How to pronounce ghoul (audio)
Definition of ghoulnext
as in demon
an evil spirit in Arabic folklore, ghouls could change their shapes but had one unchanging feature: donkey's hooves for feet

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of ghoul My childhood consisted of watching scary movies with friends, being fascinated by ghosts and ghouls, and happily disappearing down rabbit holes about witch trials, haunted places, and the stranger corners of American history. — Jessica Chapel, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026 The film follows a group of adults in an isolated Pennsylvania farmhouse, as hoards of flesh-eating ghouls overrun the country and infiltrate their residence. — Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026 Six Flags Great America has transformed once more for its 35th Fright Fest, bringing demons, ghosts, ghouls and other things that go bump in the night to the park. — Joseph States, Chicago Tribune, 1 Oct. 2026 At once not quite real and all too real, Cohn has the uncanny presence of a ghoul or a fiend. — Fintan O’Toole, The New York Review of Books, 19 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for ghoul
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ghoul
  1. demon
  2. ghost
  3. vampire
  4. devil
Noun
  • Rest assured, the only demons in Phony appear to be figurative.
    — Mikey O'Connell, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026
  • One American season later, the race demons raged and all of those commitments are dropped.
    — Kamau Bobb October 21, Literary Hub, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of demon
Noun
  • Spirit Airlines' ghost planes The problems with young retirements predate Spirit's collapse.
    — Leslie Josephs, CNBC, 24 Oct. 2026
  • In 2026, the gemlike Brooklyn venue lent Kushner’s project a magical quality, turning the audience into ghosts from the future, eavesdropping on the fall of the Weimar Republic but unable to intervene.
    — Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of ghost
Noun
  • Many Orlando-area homes feature skeletons that tower over the neighborhood, witchy covens, horror movie icons, clowns, pirate ships, pumpkins, zombies and vampires.
    — Patrick Connolly, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 Oct. 2026
  • It is nearly considered folkloric, with contemporary vampires still mirroring the characteristics of Polidori’s Ruthven.
    — Maria Papadouris, JSTOR Daily, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of vampire
Noun
  • In Jennifer’s Body, Needy (Seyfried) is BFFs with the titular mean girl played by Fox, whose body becomes possessed by a succubus with a taste for teen boys after a botched sacrifice by a devil-worshipping boy band (led by Adam Brody).
    — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Behave yourself, buddy, or the little red devil will take you away!
    — Sanat Pai Raikar, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of devil

Browse Nearby Words

ghosty
ghoul
ghoulie
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Ghoul.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ghoul. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on ghoul

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about ghoul

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