Fantasmal

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Resembling or characteristic of a ghost, with an eerie or ethereal quality
2. Having the qualities of a phantom or spirit, often seeming unreal or insubstantial
3. Appearing as a shadowy or illusory presence that suggests a supernatural apparition

Etymology: "Fantasmal" is a variant spelling of "phantasmal," formed by adding the adjective suffix "-al," meaning "of or pertaining to," to "phantasm." That is the whole of the construction, so the interest lies in the noun it rests on. "Phantasm" comes from Greek "phantasma," an appearance or apparition, derived from "phantazein," to make visible or to show, which itself belongs to the family of "phainein," to shine or to bring to light. The core sense is therefore something that has been made to appear, a vision rather than a solid thing. Over time the noun narrowed toward the ghostly. A phantasm came to mean a spectral image, a figure seen in a dream or conjured by the mind, and the adjective inherited that insubstantiality. A phantasmal scene is one that looks real yet has no body behind it. The spelling with "f" is the less common of the two forms, though both are standard English.

Synonyms: ghostly, phantom, spectral