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Added 9 October 2026

spook

/spuːk/ noun

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about spook at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A ghost or phantom.
The building was haunted by a couple of spooks.
A scare or fright.
The big spider gave me a spook.
An undercover agent, spy, or intelligence analyst.

verb

To frighten or make nervous (especially by startling).
The hunters were spooked when the black cat crossed their path. The movement in the bushes spooked the deer and they ran.
To become frightened (by something startling).
The deer spooked at the sound of the dogs.
To haunt.

Origin

Borrowed from Dutch spook (“ghost”), from Middle Dutch spooc (“spook, ghost”). Cognate with Middle Low German spôk, spûk (“apparition, ghost”), Middle High German gespük (“a haunting”), German Spuk, Danish spøge (“to haunt”), Swedish spöke (“ghost”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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