1
as in spy
a person who tries secretly to obtain information for one country in the territory of another usually unfriendly country
Russia recalled its spooks after the collapse of the Soviet Union
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in ghost
the soul of a dead person thought of especially as appearing to living people
Halloween is the night when spooks and goblins are said to roam abroad
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in to frighten
to strike with fear
the sudden noise spooked her out of her skin
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spook
Ryan Schwartz, TVLine, 4 May 2025
The ragtag group joins together under the watchful eye of Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), a morally flexible private-sector spook who has been named the head of the CIA in the new film.
—Eliana Dockterman, Time, 30 Apr. 2025
Diane Brady, Fortune, 23 June 2025
But the mere specter of them returning spooked the workers enough to bring the project to a temporary halt.
—Roger Vincent, Los Angeles Times, 21 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for spook
Noun
Come Season 2, Colter and Russell were confronted by a government spook who knew an awful lot about Dad.
—Ryan Schwartz, TVLine, 4 May 2025
The ragtag group joins together under the watchful eye of Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), a morally flexible private-sector spook who has been named the head of the CIA in the new film.
—Eliana Dockterman, Time, 30 Apr. 2025
Verb
The advanced technology and consulting company derived 98% of its $12 billion in revenue from U.S. government contracts last year, which made Booz Allen vulnerable to DOGE cuts that spooked investors and forced him to lay off 7% of its staff.
—Diane Brady, Fortune, 23 June 2025
But the mere specter of them returning spooked the workers enough to bring the project to a temporary halt.
—Roger Vincent, Los Angeles Times, 21 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for spook
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spook
Noun
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For those who don't know, Area 51 is a large, secretive military base in the remote Nevada desert where several exotic military aircraft have been developed and tested over the years, including the venerable U-2 spy plane way back when.—
Jim Clash,
Forbes.com,
6 July 2025
-
Israel’s spy service conducted elaborate sabotage operations on Iranian soil.—
Nabih Bulos
Foreign Correspondent,
Los Angeles Times,
5 July 2025
Noun
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But what do the locals actually think of their vampire-like namesake, who is believed to be the vengeful ghost of a woman who died in pregnancy or childbirth? To find out, researcher Timo Duile headed to Pontianak for conversations with ethnic Malay Muslim and Dayak Christian residents.—
H.M.A. Leow,
JSTOR Daily,
5 July 2025
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The ghosts of late 1950s-early 1960s country favorites Maybelle Carter and Patsy Cline share space with pop-soul icons The Shirelles.—
Marcus K. Dowling,
The Tennessean,
2 July 2025
Verb
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But their return has also angered and frightened livestock farmers and others in rural communities who are having to learn to live alongside these once nearly-extinct creatures.—
Ruth Sherlock,
NPR,
9 July 2025
-
But on Friday night, the booms and blasts of celebratory fireworks appear to have frightened them away.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
6 July 2025
Noun
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The North Korean cyber operatives often take on projects involving virtual currency exchanges, enabling them to more easily launder money back to the regime, undetected.—
July 8,
CBS News,
8 July 2025
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Aside from covert operatives launching short-range drones from within Iran to strike strategic targets, Israel also relied overwhelmingly on its airpower to hit strategic and leadership targets during the campaign.—
Paul Iddon,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
Noun
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If the humor clicks with you, there’s joy to be had in accidentally setting yourself on fire over and over again while being chased by a Slenderman-like apparition made of Post-Its.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
19 June 2025
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Venus reaches its point of greatest western elongation on June 1, at which time the dazzling 'morning star' will be at its most distant point from the sun in Earth's sky during its pre-dawn apparition.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
31 May 2025
Verb
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The combination of a floodlight and a camera is a great way to scare off intruders and get better quality footage at night.—
Simon Hill,
Wired News,
11 July 2025
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Simply pull the pin, and the device will emit a blaring siren sound in combination with a strobe light that will draw attention to your situation and scare away would-be threats.—
Merrell Readman,
Travel + Leisure,
10 July 2025
Noun
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The fish-out-of-water tale follows Mia, a young and spoiled New York heiress sent by her grandfather to Palermo, without money or luxuries, to work as a real estate agent in the family business.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
10 July 2025
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Those statements prompted the agents to acquire a warrant and arrest the couple the following day.—
Jimmy Jenkins,
AZCentral.com,
10 July 2025
Noun
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There was no moment in the tournament that better captured the spirit of football and its role as an emotional release valve than when every member of the squad hounded Gray.—
Jordan Campbell,
New York Times,
8 July 2025
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The fun-loving spirit of the shimmery product was captured in the punky campaign, inspired by the 2012 thriller in which Gomez starred alongside Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Benson, Rachel Korine and James Franco.—
Kaleigh Werner,
Footwear News,
8 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spook.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spook. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
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