- ghoul
- ghoul 1786, in the English translation of Beckford's "Vathek," from Arabic ghul, an evil spirit that robs graves and feeds on corpses, from ghala "he seized."
Etymology dictionary. 2014.
ghoul
Look at other dictionaries:
ghoul — ghoul; ghoul·ish; ar·ghoul; ghoul·ish·ly; ghoul·ish·ness; … English syllables
Ghoul — (g[=oo]l), n. [Per. gh[=o]l an imaginary sylvan demon, supposed to devour men and animals: cf. Ar. gh[=u]l, F. goule.] An imaginary evil being among Eastern nations, which was supposed to feed upon human bodies. [Written also {ghole} .] Moore.… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
ghoul — n. m. (Maghreb) Monstre anthropophage dans la mythologie arabe; ogre … Encyclopédie Universelle
ghoul — [gu:l] n [Date: 1700 1800; : Arabic; Origin: ghul, from ghala to seize ] 1.) an evil spirit in stories that takes bodies from ↑graves (=place in the ground where dead people are buried) and eats them 2.) someone who gets pleasure from unpleasant… … Dictionary of contemporary English
ghoul — [ gul ] noun count 1. ) an imaginary creature that eats dead people 2. ) someone who is interested in or enjoys unpleasant situations involving death or injury … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
ghoul — meaning (1) ‘an evil spirit’ and (2) ‘a person morbidly interested in death’, is pronounced gool … Modern English usage
ghoul — [n] evil demon bogeyman, devil, evil spirit, fiend, grave robber, monster; concepts 370,412 … New thesaurus
ghoul — ► NOUN 1) an evil spirit or phantom, especially one supposed to rob graves and feed on dead bodies. 2) a person morbidly interested in death or disaster. DERIVATIVES ghoulish adjective ghoulishly adverb ghoulishness noun. ORIGIN Arabic, denoting… … English terms dictionary
ghoul — [go͞ol] n. [Ar ghūl, demon of the desert < ghāla, to seize] 1. Muslim Folklore an evil spirit that robs graves and feeds on the flesh of the dead 2. a person who robs graves 3. a person who derives pleasure from loathsome acts or things… … English World dictionary
Ghoul — A ghoul is a monster from ancient Arabian folklore that dwells in burial grounds and other uninhabited places. The English word comes from the Arabic name for the creature: الغول ghūl , which literally means demon . [cite web|title= ghoul… … Wikipedia
