phantasmal

[ fan-taz-muhl ]

adjective

1. pertaining to or of the nature of a phantasm; unreal; illusory; spectral:

   phantasmal creatures of nightmare.

Other Words From

• phantas·mali·ty noun
• phan·tasmal·ly phan·tasmi·cal·ly phantas·mati·cal·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of phantasmal¹

First recorded in 1805–15; phantasm + -al ¹

Example Sentences

This phantasmal region holds a particular lure for Osborn—not simply to uncover its hidden biodiversity but also to find out how living things can survive such extreme conditions.

From National Geographic

That phantasmal sound, that subliminal beat, untethered to time but bound to the Earth, informed Gay’s approach to the album.

From Washington Post

The lighting transforms them into phantasmal silhouettes, like blurred figures from an old photograph album.

From New York Times

According to Kröger and Anderson, her ghost stories form a “phantasmal paradigm shift” in the evolution of the genre.

From New York Times

But that’s the effect of this clever writer who undulates so eerily from phantasmal excess to psychological realism.

From Washington Post