plural hauntings
: an act of haunting
especially
: visitation or inhabitation by a ghost
… its early history is replete with drama: duels, murders, shipwrecks, … even ghostly hauntings. —
Sally Gibson
Sally Gibson When asked about hauntings on Tuesday's tour, [Albert] Walavich said he knew he would get a question about ghosts on Halloween, but he doesn't believe any haunt the grounds. —Taylor Hartz
Taylor Hartz
: having qualities (such as sadness or beauty) that linger in the memory : not easily forgotten
a haunting melody
haunting images
… pale, branchless tree trunks with a haunting, Georgia O'Keeffe quality …—Susannah Master
Susannah Masterhaunting
3 of 3present participle of haunt entry 1
Synonyms
Examples of haunting in a Sentence
Adjective
the haunting tones of the Highland bagpipes
Recent Examples on the Web
Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 14 Jan. 2025
The movie is a metaphysical mystery, a sort of American gothic in which a warm and inviting old suburban house becomes the shivery site of a haunting, a confinement, and a menace.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 17 Jan. 2025
Melissa Noel, Essence, 6 Feb. 2025
Matt and Ryan have crafted a story that is haunting and deeply relevant.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 5 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for haunting 
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Noun
The novel is also a ghost story because hauntings are involved, both the usual kind and others that are the product of Han’s singular imagination.
—Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 14 Jan. 2025
The movie is a metaphysical mystery, a sort of American gothic in which a warm and inviting old suburban house becomes the shivery site of a haunting, a confinement, and a menace.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 17 Jan. 2025
Adjective
This series delves deep into some of the most haunting and underreported stories from the calendar.
—Melissa Noel, Essence, 6 Feb. 2025
Matt and Ryan have crafted a story that is haunting and deeply relevant.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 5 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for haunting
Dictionary Entries Near haunting
Cite this Entry
“Haunting.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/haunting. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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