Ghostbusters

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A team or group specializing in capturing or eliminating supernatural entities or spirits usually appearing to protect or assist people haunted by ghosts
2. Individuals or an organization known for investigating and expelling paranormal beings such as ghosts through specialized equipment or methods often portrayed in fiction or media
3. A band of supernatural investigators who identify, trap, and remove phantasmal apparitions causing disturbances or fear in various locations

Etymology: The most surprising thing about this word is how little of it existed before a single film: "ghostbuster" as a compound is built from two ordinary English words, "ghost" and "buster," and the sense of "buster" as someone who breaks or tackles a thing is a long-standing one. What the 1984 film did was fuse them into a job title for a specific kind of professional, a team that hunts and removes spectres. The film, Ghostbusters, starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis and Ernie Hudson, turned the compound from a casual phrase into a proper noun and then a common one. Its success made the term familiar enough that people began using it as a general label for anyone who dealt with hauntings, and the plural "ghostbusters" follows the same pattern as any countable noun. The plural is simply the regular form of "ghostbuster," so it refers to more than one such investigator at a time, whether in a film, a team, or a fictional group.

Synonyms: paranormal investigators, spirit hunters