Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Something apparently seen, heard, or sensed, but having no physical reality; a ghost or apparition.
- noun An image that appears only in the mind; an illusion.
- noun Medicine A model of a human body or body part.
- adjective Resembling, characteristic of, or being a phantom.
- adjective Fictitious or nonexistent, often when intended to deceive.
- adjective Believed to be real even though illusory.
- adjective Being a phantom limb.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A phantom crystal.
- noun A map or diagram of the magnetic field made by strewing iron filings upon a plate of glass-or other smooth surface and allowing them to arrange themselves along the lines of force.
- noun Appearance merely; illusion; unreality; fancy; delusion; deception; deceit.
- noun A phantasm; a specter or apparition; an imagined vision; an optical illusion.
- noun Same as
manikin , 2. - Apparent merely; illusive; spectral; ghostly: as, a phantom ship.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective Being, or of the nature of, a phantom.
- noun That which has only an apparent existence; an apparition; a specter; a phantasm; a sprite; an airy spirit; an ideal image.
- noun See Flying Dutchman, under
Flying . - noun (Med.) a swelling, especially of the abdomen, due to muscular spasm, accumulation of flatus, etc., simulating an actual tumor in appearance, but disappearing upon the administration of an anæsthetic.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun Something
apparently seen ,heard , orsensed , but having nophysical reality ; aghost orapparition ; somethingelusive ordelusive . - noun An
image that appears only in themind ; anillusion . - adjective
illusive - adjective
fictitious ornonexistent
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a ghostly appearing figure
- noun something existing in perception only
- adjective something apparently sensed but having no physical reality
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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At Jacques Torres , chocolatier clerk Katie Bast admits to seeding the tip jar with what she called "phantom dollars"—money from her own pocket.
Tip the Iceberg Anne Kadet 2011
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But he didn't know that Xerox created what it called a "phantom account" for his 1985 payout, credited it with hypothetical interest pegged to stock-market returns—often in the double digits—and subtracted the total from his pension.
When Benefits Bite Back Ellen E. Schultz 2011
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We were also given what they call phantom stock for bonuses at the end of the year when we had a good profitable year.
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It documents what it calls phantom aid that's pledged by the US and other countries but never shows up.
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I remember on Saturday I started to feel a little bit of what they call phantom pain and it was very freaky.
Soul Surfer Bethany Hamilton 2004
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I remember on Saturday I started to feel a little bit of what they call phantom pain and it was very freaky.
Soul Surfer Bethany Hamilton 2004
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The party says Canadians may be paying up to $20 million a year for what it calls "phantom gas".
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Now, after more than two and a half years of war, we on the other side know that the "phantom" is a grim and bloody reality, for we have known the hellish horrors which it perpetrates not only in battle, but in the peaceful villages and country.
The Prussian Mind 1917
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That he had never heard the word phantom connected to the phrase was an unusual tribute to Vanko’s reputation.
The Big Scam Paul Lindsay 2005
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I think avoiding litigation or physical assault by the ‘exposed party’ could be a mitigating factor in phantom writing.
sigi commented on the word phantom
phantastic word, mysterious; never seen, but always there and appearing just when you do not ecpect it!!!!!
January 25, 2008
skipvia commented on the word phantom
Zorro. See A Horse is a Horse
February 1, 2008
25418050 commented on the word phantom
i use this word as a verb -- use it to replace the (extremely boring) word disappear.
ex: 'pulled a phantom last night' ... 'sorry i phantomed on ya...'
February 21, 2011
bilby commented on the word phantom
I remember references to 'Peter the Phantom Puller', the offscreen hand who slid panels aside, on the game show Blankety Blanks. Many moons ago.
I wish I did not remember this.
February 21, 2011