ghost

ghost

I

ghost¹ /ɡəʊst $ ɡoʊst/ noun [countable]1.  SPIRIT the spirit of a dead person that some people think they can feel or see in a place
    ghost of
    the ghost of Old Tom Morris
    They say the young girl’s ghost still haunts (=often appears in) the house.
    He looked as if he’d seen a ghost (=he looked very frightened). ⇨ Holy Ghost
2.  MEMORY/EFFECT the memory or effect of someone or something bad that lived, existed, or happened in the past
    ghost of
    The ghost of Stalinism still affects life in Russia today.
3. the ghost of a smile/sound etc a smile etc that is so slight you are not sure it happened:
    The ghost of a smile flitted across her sad features.
4.  TELEVISION/COMPUTER a second image that is not clear on a television or computer screen
5. give up the ghost
  a. if a machine gives up the ghost, it does not work any more and cannot be repaired – used humorously:
    Unfortunately, my car’s just given up the ghost.
  b. to die
6. (not) a ghost of a chance not even a slight chance of doing something, or of something happening:
    They don’t stand a ghost of a chance of winning.
     

THESAURUS

   ▪ ghost the spirit of a dead person that some people think they can feel or see in a place: His ghost is believed to haunt the house.
   ▪ spirit a creature without a physical body, such as an angel or ghost: evil spirits | the spirit world
   ▪ apparition an image of a dead person that someone sees suddenly for a short time: He claimed to have seen an apparition in the church.
   ▪ poltergeist a ghost that people cannot see, which throws things or moves things around: The house was haunted by a poltergeist that makes things move around all by themselves, sometimes quite big things like beds or wardrobes.
   ▪ spook informal a ghost: I’m not scared of spooks.
   ▪ phantom literary a frightening and unclear image of a dead person: They had seen phantoms gliding on the surface of the water.
   ▪ spectre British English, specter American English literary a ghost, especially a frightening one: She had looked like a spectre. | The following night, the spectre appeared again.

II

ghost² verb [transitive]
to write something as a ghost writer