“What’s in a Word?” is back with a Halloween list of spooky creatures you may have heard about, but exactly how much do you know about these creatures? All these words are nouns.
We’ve selected thirteen (See what I did there?) creatures that go bump in the night and put the scary into your favorite Halloween tales.
Maybe a few will ring your doorbell in search of a Halloween treat. Don’t turn them away empty- handed/pawed or you could end up on the receiving end of an unwanted trick!
1. Apparition – a ghost or ghost-like image of a person or animal.in late Middle English, it meant the action of appearing. From the Latin words, apparere (appear) and apparitio (attendance) and the English verb, appear.
2. Banshee – a female spirit in Irish folklore who heralds the death of a family member by shrieking, wailing, screaming, or keening. From the Old Irish, ben side meaning woman of the fairy mound.
3. Bogeyman or Boogeyman – a mythical creature used to scare children into behaving. Bogeyman is the preferred spelling in British English and boogeyman is the preferred spelling for US English. It’s thought to originate from the Middle English word bugge or bogge (frightening spirit). It’s probably related to the Scottish word bogil and/or the English word boggart (shape shifter).
4. Gargoyle – a grotesque carved or formed creature placed on buildings to redirect the flow of rainwater and prevent it from damaging the structural integrity of the building. According to the French legend of the Gargouille, St. Romanus saved the countryside around Rouen from a fire-breathing dragon called Gargouille or Goji. The captured creature’s head and neck would not burn because if its ability to breathe fire, so St. Romanus mounted the head and neck of the creature on the walls of a newly built church to scare away evil spirits. From Old French (gargouille meaning throat) and Greek (gargarizein meaning to gargyle).
5. Ghoul – a demon-like being or monstrous human figure usually found in or near graveyards. It consumes human flesh. From an Arabic word meaning to seize.
6. Grim Reaper – the personification of death. It is depicted as a skeletal figure in a black hooded robe carrying a scythe. When the grim reaper comes to collect a person’s soul, they die. The term grim reaper first appears in English literature in 1847 in “The Circle of Human Life,” a partial translation of a German devotional text from 1841 that follows the life of a Christian.
7. Hellhound – mythical dogs that are guardians of the underworld or servants of hell and/or the devil. From Middle English and Old English words helle and hund. The combined word, hellehund was used before the 12th century.
8. Hobgoblin – a household spirit in English folklore that was originally considered to be a helpful spirit. After the spread of Christianity, hobgoblins were blamed for mischief and considered to be evil spirits. The word originates from the Middle English or Early Modern English word hob. It first appeared about 1530, but was probably used earlier.
9. Lycanthrope – a mythical creature or person who can transform into a wolf or other animal. From the Greek words lycos (wolf) and antthrōpos (human being).
10. Phantasm – a product of fantasy; an illusion or delusive appearance as in a ghost or specter. From Greek (phainein, phantasma, phantazein); Old French (fantosme).
11. Poltergeist – a rumbling ghost or noisy spirit usually responsible for loud noises and objects being thrown, damaged, or destroyed. From German, poltern ( to make sound or rumble).
12. Wraith – a ghost or ghostlike image of a person that usually appears shortly before or after their death. It can also be used to refer to a pale, thin, sickly person. It’s origin may be Scottish from the early 16th century, but it may have been used earlier in another language.
13. Zombie – a dead person who has been brought back to life, but without human qualities. Typically these creatures would be used for manual labor or an evil purpose. Zombies are incapable of thought or reason. In books and movies, they often attack and eat human beings. Usage of the word was first recorded in English in 1819, but its origin comes from various African languages and dialects.