ghoul

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A frightening creature from Middle Eastern folklore that is said to haunt graveyards and eat the dead.

   Grammar: Has a plural: ghouls lurk in old stories.

   In the old tale, a ghoul crept out of the cemetery at midnight.

   The children dressed up as ghosts, witches and ghouls for Halloween.

   Horror films often show ghouls with pale skin and sharp teeth.

2. 2nouncountabledisapprovingfigurative

   A person who seems to take an unhealthy pleasure in death, disaster or other people's suffering.

   Grammar: Used as a harsh criticism of a person's behavior.

   A crowd of ghouls gathered at the crash site, filming everything.

   Critics called the website's owners ghouls for profiting from the tragedy.

   Only a ghoul would joke about a stranger's funeral.

Word forms

Common combinations

a graveyard ghoul

The story features a graveyard ghoul that digs up old coffins.

ghouls and ghosts

The party was full of ghouls and ghosts in homemade costumes.

a ghoul in the night

The noise outside made her imagine a ghoul in the night.

call someone a ghoul

He called the reporter a ghoul for chasing the grieving family.

ghoul-like

His ghoul-like face appeared in the window and made us jump.

Synonyms and how they differ

ghost

A ghost is the spirit of a dead person, whereas a ghoul is a monster that feeds on the dead.

ogre

An ogre is a huge cruel giant in fairy tales and has no special link to graves or corpses.

vulture

Used figuratively, vulture suggests someone who profits from others' misfortune, while ghoul stresses a morbid fascination with death.

Word family

ghoulish adjective

unpleasantly interested in death or suffering, or like a ghoul

ghoulishly adverb

in a way that shows a morbid delight

ghoulishness noun

the quality of being morbid or grim

Commonly confused: ghoul or ghost?

Practice

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