1
a
: something apparent to sense but with no substantial existence : apparition
b
: something elusive or visionary
c
: an object of continual dread or abhorrence
the phantom of disease and want
2
: something existing in appearance only
3
: a representation of something abstract, ideal, or incorporeal
she was a phantom of delight—
William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth1
: of the nature of, suggesting, or being a phantom : illusory
2
: fictitious, dummy
phantom voters
Synonyms
Examples of phantom in a Sentence
Noun
The book is about the phantoms that are said to haunt the nation's cemeteries.
The crisis is merely a phantom made up by the media.
Adjective
People claim to have seen a phantom ship floating on the lake.
A number of ballots from phantom voters had to be thrown out.
Recent Examples on the Web
Sara Holdren, Vulture, 29 Sep. 2024
Mary Holland is joining the cast as Patience, the ghost of an ultra-judgmental Puritan woman abandoned by gay Revolutionary War phantom Isaac (Brandon Scott Jones).
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 18 Oct. 2024
Andy Andersen, Vulture, 1 Nov. 2024
The narrative arc of Ghosts follows a gentleman mysteriously endowed with supernatural abilities that frighten the residents of a phantom town.
—Ime Ekpo, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for phantom 
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Noun
Gloria and Ruby arrive soon enough, dragging husbands and humdrum lives from elsewhere in Britain, but Joan is the real phantom — no one in the family has seen her for twenty years.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 29 Sep. 2024
Mary Holland is joining the cast as Patience, the ghost of an ultra-judgmental Puritan woman abandoned by gay Revolutionary War phantom Isaac (Brandon Scott Jones).
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 18 Oct. 2024
Adjective
Only three episodes in, and Joe’s home-life pattern is already getting a bit redundant — pull up to the driveway with a melancholy mix of weariness and relief, get triggered into perceiving a phantom threat, draw a gun and almost shoot a family member.
—Andy Andersen, Vulture, 1 Nov. 2024
The narrative arc of Ghosts follows a gentleman mysteriously endowed with supernatural abilities that frighten the residents of a phantom town.
—Ime Ekpo, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for phantom
Dictionary Entries Near phantom
Cite this Entry
“Phantom.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/phantom. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
phantom
1 of 2 noun
phan·tom
ˈfant-əm 
: something (as a ghost) that seems to be there but is not real : apparition
phantom
2 of 2 adjective1
: suggesting or being a phantom
2
: existing in name only : not real : fictitious
phantom voters
Medical Definition
phantom
1 of 2 noun
phan·tom
variants
also fantom
1
: a model of the body or one of its parts
2
: a body of material resembling a body or bodily part in mass, composition, and dimensions and used to measure absorption of radiations
phantom
2 of 2 adjective
variants
also fantom
: not caused by an anatomical lesion
phantom respiratory disorders
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