spectrally
- adverb
- /ˈspɛktrəli/
- Literature
:
espectralmente
- She had a companion: a very tall and spectrally pale young Finn with an enormous cotton-candy wad of steely purple hair.
Examples
-
Special effect: the Indian ghost is leaving Jim's body—spectrally moving off him, hovering there in the air, its eyes—the face of a dying Indian on an Arizona highway—then gone.
Fiction book (1991) -
She felt a spectrally cold breeze pass through the empty hallway, sending chills down her spine.
-
Smith is the infestation, and it is a black character, in this case a woman, The Oracle (played by Gloria Foster and Mary Alice), in a peculiar alliance with Neo, the spectrally white hero, and the machines far away in their own city panicking (in their own way) at the Matrix's loss, who ultimately saves the day.
Academic text (2010) -
The old house had a spectrally glowing light shining through the windows at night.
-
As the fog rolled in, the trees appeared spectrally, their shapes almost ghost-like in the mist.
Synonyms
30
6.8
In a strange and frightening way
4
7.9
In a way that nature cannot explain
1
7.0
In a strange, frightening way that feels like a ghost
1
8.9
In a way that involves events beyond normal science
In a way that seems like a ghost or a dream
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
spectrally = spectral (transparent) = spectr + al + ly
The adverb is a regular '-ly' formation from the adjective 'spectral'; if the adjective meaning 'ghostly' is known, the adverbial sense is predictable.
Etymology
Spectrally in the ghostly sense is related to specter ('a ghost') and the same root spect- meaning 'to look'. So, when something is described spectrally, it appears ghost-like or like a strange, visible presence.