Definitions
01a ghost
B2 · Upper Intermediate Countable noun Literary
n. a ghost or a spirit that you think you see.
n. an apparition or ghost-like figure.
“The old stories say a phantom walks the halls of the castle at night.”
“The poet described the mist rising from the lake as a pale phantom, haunting the shoreline until the sun burned it away.”
Synonyms
02an illusion
C1 · Advanced Countable noun Formal
n. something that you think is real but only exists in your mind.
n. a mental image or illusion that lacks physical reality.
“He was chasing a phantom of his past, trying to find a home that no longer existed.”
“The promised economic recovery proved to be a mere phantom, vanishing as soon as the quarterly inflation figures were released.”
Antonyms
03medical/technical model
C2 · Proficiency Countable noun Medicine Technical
n. a model or object used in science to act like a human body part.
n. a device or test object that simulates the physical characteristics of human tissue, often used to calibrate imaging equipment.
“The researchers used a water-filled phantom to test the new X-ray machine.”
“Before the clinical trials began, the engineers calibrated the MRI scanner using a synthetic phantom designed to mimic the density of human brain tissue.”
04fake or non-existent
B2 · Upper Intermediate
adj. describing something that is not real or does not actually exist, often used for fake businesses.
adj. fictitious, non-existent, or illusive; often used to describe fraudulent entities or sensations.
“The police discovered that the money was being sent to a phantom company.”
“The patient complained of phantom pain in his limb, a common neurological phenomenon following an amputation.”
Usage
Usually placed before the noun.
Synonyms
Etymology
Inherited from Middle English fantome, fanteme, from Old French fantosme, fantasme, from Latin phantasma (“an apparition, specter; (in Late Latin also) appearance, image”), from Ancient Greek φάντασμα (phántasma, “phantasm, an appearance, image, apparition, specter”), from φαντάζω (phantázō, “I make visible”). Doublet of phantasm.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Domain
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.B2 FirstIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.5.5–6.5TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 4.0–4.572–94TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.785–944
- Frequency
- Frequent
- Level
- B2 · Upper Intermediate
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/phantom
「カタカナ語」 data: JMdict (EDRDG), CC BY-SA 4.0