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Glite Dictionary
ghost word

ghost word

9.9
A word that enters a language because of a mistake, like a misprint, and has no real use
  • noun
  • /ɡoʊst wɜrd/
  • Specialized
translation icon : palabra fantasma
  • The dictionary entry for 'dord' was actually a ghost word resulting from a typographical error.

Examples

  • Linguists enjoy tracing the origins of every ghost word in historical dictionaries.

  • 'Phantomnation' was once thought to be a valid term, but it turned out to be a ghost word.

  • A ghost word exists.

  • The concept of a ghost word is fascinating!

  • The dictionary entry for 'dord' is an example of a ghost word that resulted from a typographical error.

  • Linguists enjoy identifying ghost words that have mistakenly entered the language through misprints.

  • 'Phantomnation' became a ghost word after it was debunked as a legitimate term.

Synonyms

nonword
vsghost word
8.6

Not recognized as part of the language or its dictionaries

is formed from a mistake and has no real usage origin

Antonyms

actual
∞ 1.4

Real and existing in fact, not imagined or expected

recognized
  • Formal
3.5

Known and officially accepted as important or respected

Surface Forms

ghost word singular
ghost words plural

Morphology

ghost + word

The compound combines 'ghost' (something insubstantial, remnant, or not fully real) with 'word' (a linguistic unit), so a B1 learner who knows the constituents would likely infer it refers to a nonexistent, obsolete, or spurious word. However, the precise technical meaning — that the word entered usage through a mistake such as a misreading or misprint — is a specialized nuance not fully predictable from the constituents alone.

Etymology

Ghost word comes from the image of a ghost — a word that seems to appear in a book or dictionary by mistake, often after a printing error or a misread note. So, it means 'a word that became part of the language by mistake, not because people really used it'.