a writer who gives the credit of authorship to someone else
"The famous playwright was actually just a front for an unknown ghost who wrote all their celebrated hits under his name."
the visible disembodied soul of a dead person
"The old housekeeper claimed she saw a ghost wandering the hallway every night after sunset."
The spirit; the soul of man.
"The old house seemed to whisper secrets when I believed its ghost was still watching from the shadows."
In plain English: A ghost is the spirit of a dead person that people believe can appear to living people.
"The ghost of an old friend still haunts my memories."
Usage: Use "ghost" to refer to the spirit or soul of a deceased person, often believed to appear after death. In modern conversation, it also describes an invisible presence haunting a place or someone who suddenly stops responding in communication.
To haunt; to appear to in the form of an apparition.
"After his funeral, friends claimed that Elias's ghost was still wandering the old house they inherited from him."
In plain English: To ghost someone means to suddenly stop replying to their messages and cut off all communication without any explanation.
"The old theater ghosted the area after it was abandoned for years."
Usage: In everyday conversation, to ghost someone means to abruptly end all communication without explanation or warning. Use this verb when describing the act of ignoring texts and calls from a friend, partner, or acquaintance until they stop reaching out entirely.
The word ghost comes from Old English gāst, which originally meant "breath," "spirit," or "soul." Its spelling with an 'h' was later adopted in the 1480s, likely influenced by Middle Dutch and used to refer to the Holy Spirit.