spectral

adjective

Definition of spectralnext
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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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 spectral The stairwell of the North Tower, or the five charred, spectral stories still standing, was being targeted for potential recoveries, and for good reason. — Peter Wilkinson, Rolling Stone, 11 Sep. 2026 The design uses spectral beam combining, which merges several fiber-laser beams into a single high-power output. — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 5 Sep. 2026 This is where spectral imaging and vision systems monitor shade variations and print registration in real time across the full width of the fabric roll, ensuring dye uniformity from batch to batch. — Arthur Zaczkiewicz, Footwear News, 27 Aug. 2026 Stars are arranged by spectral class; from hot to cool, the classes are O, B, A, F, G, K, M, L, T, and Y. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for spectral
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spectral
  1. haunting
  2. creepy
  3. eerie
  4. phantom
  5. ghostly
Adjective
  • The vestiges of his fading memory flash by with a haunting plainness, the melancholy of all this Americana and the sadness of a mind ravaged by time strike the viewer plainly at the end of this maximalist piece of life-writing.
    — Stephanie Wambugu, Vulture, 12 Oct. 2026
  • The film’s musical score, by Damon Albarn of Blur, has a haunting Bowie-like party-on-the-abyss shimmer.
    — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of haunting
Adjective
  • Palmer doesn’t appear until the last 15 minutes, but her creepy performance is indelible.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026
  • As her son Rauri, Murphy plays a creepy, brooding university dropout whom audiences also can’t help sympathize with.
    — Isabelle Farina, Variety, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of creepy
Adjective
  • For instance, Siri’s lack of thinking power compared with other ultra-smart AI agents means that there’s far less of a chance of going rogue, or behaving in eerie ways.
    — Andrew R. Chow, Time, 15 Oct. 2026
  • The Bog Wife by Kay Chronister An eerie fable that seems to take place across and outside of time, The Bog Wife is already a classic of the modern bog-core genre.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of eerie
Adjective
  • The quarter ended with Howard called for a questionable shooting foul on Sabrina Ionescu, who sold the phantom contact before missing both free throws.
    — Fiifi Frimpong, New York Daily News, 8 Oct. 2026
  • This week, the SEC revealed details of a couple of cases involving phantom pre-IPO shares of SpaceX, OpenAI, and other hot startups.
    — Alexei Oreskovic, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of phantom
Adjective
  • When Brolin’s voice takes on a ghostly presence inside the whale, the emotional insistence grows louder without becoming more persuasive.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 14 Oct. 2026
  • As the 1986 return approached, people who remembered that earlier appearance likely told their children and grandchildren about being awakened before dawn and taken outside to see a huge, ghostly, gleaming object in the sky.
    — Joe Rao, Space.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of ghostly

Browse Nearby Words

spectra
spectral
spectrum
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Cite this Entry

“Spectral.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spectral. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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