specters meaning

Definition of 'specter'

specter in American English

Examples of 'specter' in a sentence specter, browse alphabetically specter.

• spectatorship
• spectatrices
• spectinomycin
• All ENGLISH words that begin with 'S'

Related terms of specter

• Brocken specter

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/ ( ˈspɛktə ) /

a ghost; phantom; apparition

a mental image of something unpleasant or menacing : the spectre of redundancy

Origin of spectre

Words nearby spectre.

• spectral line
• spectral luminous efficiency
• spectral series
• spectral type
• spectra yellow
• spectrobolometer
• spectrochemical
• spectrochemistry

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

How to use spectre in a sentence

Craig is signed on for just one more Bond flick after spectre .

A spectre is haunting the internet—the spectre of Open Sarcasm.

Nonetheless, it would have been better if the Supreme Court had not raised this spectre by halting the process.

A specter is haunting the world,” they chant, echoing the first sentence of the Communist Manifesto: “The spectre of capitalism.

Alone Orlean lay trying vainly to forget something—something that stood like a spectre before her eyes.

And when he did leave the dismal scene of this last act of his miseries, it was like the spectre of the man who had entered it.

Besides, there was the ever unceasing grizzly spectre of poverty dangling before Jessie's eyes.

A thing purple and dripping with blood—ghastly—unthinkable—monstrous—a spectre of nightmare dreams!

As a public force he was no longer a human being at all—he was a deformity, a spectre conjured up to bring fright to the beholder.

Synonyms of specters

• as in shadows
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Thesaurus Definition of specters

Synonyms & Similar Words

• apparitions
• poltergeists
• materializations
• familiar spirits
• doppelgangers
• doppelgängers

Thesaurus Entries Near specters

Cite this entry.

“Specters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/specters. Accessed 15 Oct. 2023.

More from Merriam-Webster on specters

Nglish: Translation of specters for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of specters for Arabic Speakers

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synonyms for specter

• Doppelganger
• poltergeist

antonyms for specter

Most relevant

Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.

How to use specter in a sentence

In 2019, as annual visitor numbers topped 3 million for the first time, locals loudly lamented crowding, traffic and the specter of paradise lost.

The first night, my sims met friendly green specters, which are different from the normal ghost sims that were included in the base game.

Each time the specter arrived, he’d wordlessly express love and leave Evan with a sense of peace and calm.

The UK and EU have reached a trade agreement, avoiding the specter of a no-deal Brexit and ending years of extreme economic uncertainty on both sides.

He focused on the importance of strict election deadlines and raised the specter of “chaos” if the Democrats won this case.

Despite his efforts to live in the present, he seemed haunted by the specter of his father.

Against the Grain By Michael specter , The New Yorker Should you go gluten-free?

The specter of wrongful convictions haunts the public officials involved.

The specter of this virus fills some of our most stalwart souls with unreasoning dread even when it is no immediate threat.

If 80,000 is the population of Danbury, 60 million is the population of California and Texas combined: no small specter , that.

The fatality of war was now hovering over them like a huge black specter .

Lightbody, overturning chair and table, sprang up—recoiling as one recoils before an avenging specter .

Two of them, the latter and Moreau, saw the specter of French sovereignty beckoning them on.

In the midst of their furious, living activity, the specter of death had suddenly appeared.

Meanwhile a Northern politician brought on the specter of Napoleon for a different purpose.

Choose the synonym for friendship

Words Related To specter

• bump in the night
• hallucination

apparitions

• bump in the nights
• hallucinations
• countenance
• evil spirit
• Synonyms For
• Antonyms For
• Related Words

Spectre or Specter – What’s the Difference?

Home » Spectre or Specter – What’s the Difference?

If you see a deathly apparition from beyond the grave, what should you call it? There are several options, including ghost , spirit, apparition, specter , and spectre .

Are specter and spectre the same word, though? These otherworldly beings are notorious for being stubborn and unpleasant, so you may not want to risk getting on one’s bad side by calling it a name it doesn’t like.

In reality, specter and spectre are two versions of the same word. Each version is used in a different language community. To learn more about when to use each spelling, continue reading.

What is the Difference Between Specter and Spectre?

In this post, I will compare specter vs. spectre . I will use each of these words in at least one example sentence, so you can see them in context.

Plus, I will show you a helpful memory tool that will allows you to more easily choose either specter or spectre .

When to Use Specter

Here are a few examples of specter in a sentence,

• Coriolanus awoke to the horrid specter of his dead wife harassing him from beyond the world of dreams.
• The specter of divorce loomed over the couple’s failing marriage.
• Analysts also raised the specter of lower growth with Snap, given that the company’s user growth slowed last year. – The New York Times

Specter is essentially another word for ghost in everyday usage. One important difference is that a ghost typically serves as a reminder of something that happened in the past, while a specter portends something that will happen in the future.

When to Use Spectre

• His warning comes days after the Bank of England governor, Mark Carney, claimed a spectre of stagnation was haunting Europe. – The Guardian

As you can see from the charts below, which chart spectre vs. specter in English books since 1800, the preference for spectre and specter in British and American English, respectively, is quite pronounced.

American English:

British English:

These charts aren’t 100 percent exhaustive in their scope, obviously, since they only look at books (not magazine or newspapers) published in English since 1800. Still, they clearly illustrate the spelling preferences for this noun in different language communities.

Trick to Remember the Difference

Specter and spectre are the same word. Which spelling you use depends on your intended audience.

• Use specter with predominantly American audiences.
• Use spectre for audiences composed primarily of British readers.

Both words rhyme with the masculine name Hector when pronounced aloud.

Spectre might seem overly affected to American audiences, while specter could strike British audiences as simplistic or uncultured. Thus, it is important to remember which word to use when.

Since spectre ends in an E , which is the same letter that can be found at the beginning of England, pairing spectre with British English should be a simple task.

Is it spectre or specter? Specter and spectre are spelling variants of a noun that means a ghost or ghostlike apparition .

• American writers use specter .
• British audiences use specter .

In other respects, the words are identical.

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spec•ter

• apparitional
• spectacled bear
• spectacled caiman
• Spectacled coot
• Spectacled eider
• Spectacled goose
• Spectacled snake
• spectacular
• spectacularism
• spectacularity
• spectacularly
• spectator pump
• spectator sport
• spectatorial
• spectatorship
• Spectatress
• Specter bat
• Specter candle
• Specter shrimp
• spectinomycin
• Spectioneer
• Spector shrimp
• spectral color
• spectral colour
• Spectral lemur
• spectral line
• spectral luminous efficiency
• spectral type
• spectrobolometer
• spectrobolometry
• Spectroelectric
• spectrofluorimeter
• spectrogram
• spectrograph
• spectrographic
• spectrographic analysis
• Spectator ion
• Spectator sports
• spectatoring
• Spectinomycin hydrochloride
• spectinomycin hydrochloride, sterile
• Spector, Phil
• Spectra Energy Partners
• Spectra of Cosmic Ray Nuclei
• Spectra Pritchard photometer
• Spectra Technology Inc.
• Spectracular
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Meaning of spectre – Learner’s Dictionary

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Translations of spectre

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Word of the Day

a person who often complains

Vast, mahoosive and monstrous (Words meaning ‘very large’)

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