ghost word
ghost word noun: a fictitious or erroneous word, originally meaningless (not used in practice), that has been published in a dictionary or similarly authoritative reference work or otherwise listed as genuine, generally as the result of misinterpretation, misreading, or typographical error.
Noun
ghost word (plural ghost words)
- A fictitious or erroneous word, originally meaningless (not used in practice), that has been published in a dictionary or similarly authoritative reference work or otherwise listed as genuine, generally as the result of misinterpretation, misreading, or typographical error.
- Here such cases as ghost words & misglosses, secondary semantics, different etymologies for one etymon or one etymology for different etyma, and finally semantic overpermissiveness are discussed.2006, Folia orientalia - Volumes 42-43, page 467
- Anglo-Indian English was recognised in colonial days as having unique features, but it was never called Hobson-Jobson at that time. Therefore, this is really a ghost word, or, rather, a ghost meaning.2014, James Lambert, “A Much Tortured Expression: A New Look At 'Hobson-Jobson'”, in International Journal of Lexicography, volume 27, number 1, page 65
- Synonyms:
- phantom word
ghost word meaning in Hindi and Tamil
ghost word in Hindi
- a fictitious or erroneous word
- भूत शब्द bhūt śabd
ghost word in Tamil
- இல்லாச்சொல், போலிச்சொல்
Synonyms of ghost word
Forms of ghost word
| plural | ghost words |
|---|---|
| alternative form | ghostword |
| alternative form | ghost-word |
Origin of ghost word
Coined by Walter William Skeat in 1886; from ghost + word.
Questions about ghost word
- What does ghost word mean?
- Ghost word means a fictitious or erroneous word, originally meaningless (not used in practice), that has been published in a dictionary or similarly authoritative reference work or otherwise listed as genuine, generally as the result of misinterpretation, misreading, or typographical error.
- What is ghost word in Hindi?
- Ghost word in Hindi is भूत शब्द (bhūt śabd). See Ghost word meaning in Hindi.
- What part of speech is ghost word?
- Ghost word is a noun.
- What is the plural of ghost word?
- The plural of ghost word is ghost words.
Words near ghost word in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: ghost word (page history and authors); ghost word (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-ghost word.wav.
Cite this entry: “ghost word.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/ghost_word. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.