ghostly

/ˈɡoʊstli/

//ˈɡoʊstli// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"ghostly" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“ghostly” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #24,168. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#24,168
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Of or pertaining to ghosts or spirits.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ghostly · ghostly · English

ghostly · rank #24,168 · 12 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #24,168
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH Ghanaian

Nearest frequency peer: Ghanaian (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “ghostly”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “ghostly” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

ghostly vs ghosts
71% similar
ghostly vs grossly
71% similar
ghostly vs ghost
71% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for ghostly
PropertyValue
Headwordghostly
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈɡoʊstli/
Letters7
Frequency rank#24,168
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “ghostly”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).ghostlylands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “Ghanaian” (#24,167), “Gettysburg” (#24,166), “Georg” (#24,165). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “ghostly” is #24,168. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around ghostly (IPA /ˈɡoʊstli/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #24,168 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for ghostly, with forms such as "gghostly", "ghhostly", and "ghoslty". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "ghosts", "grossly", "ghost", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English gostly, gastlich, from Old English gāstlīċ (“spiritual, holy, clerical (not lay), ghastly, ghostly, spectral”), from Proto-West Germanic *gaistalīk (“spiritual”), equivalent to ghost + -ly. Cognate with Scots ghaistly, gaistly (“spiritua… The correct English form is ghostly, spelled G-H-O-S-T-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of or pertaining to ghosts or spirits.
  2. 2
    Spooky; frightening.
  3. 3
    Relating to the soul; not carnal or secular; spiritual.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how ghostly appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. a ghostly figure with a hood
  2. The graveyard was haunted by a ghostly figure of a young girl.

Etymology

From Middle English gostly, gastlich, from Old English gāstlīċ (“spiritual, holy, clerical (not lay), ghastly, ghostly, spectral”), from Proto-West Germanic *gaistalīk (“spiritual”), equivalent to ghost + -ly. Cognate with Scots ghaistly, gaistly (“spiritual, ghastly, terrifying”), West Frisian geastlik (“spiritual, clerical, religious”), Dutch geestelijk (“spiritual, clerical, ecclesiastical”), German geistlich (“spiritual, sacred, religious”), Danish geistlig (“ecclesiastical, clerical”).

Synonyms

apparitionalghastlyghostishghostlikeghostlyphantomicphantomlikephantasmalphantasmicspectralspookywraithlikewraithy

This word in other languages

fantasmal(Español)fantomatique(Français)fantasmagórico(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • gghostly
  • ghhostly
  • ghoslty
  • ghosstly
  • ghostlly
  • ghostlyy
  • ghosttly
  • ghostyl
  • ghotsly
  • ghsotly
  • gohstly
  • hgostly

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of ghostly - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

gghostly1ghhostly1ghoslty2ghosstly1ghostlly1ghostlyy1ghosttly1ghostyl2
Edit distance from "ghostly"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "ghostly"?
"ghostly" is spelled G-H-O-S-T-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡoʊstli/.
What does "ghostly" mean?
As an adjective, "ghostly" means: Of or pertaining to ghosts or spirits.
What words are commonly confused with "ghostly"?
"ghostly" is commonly confused with "ghosts", "grossly", "ghost". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "ghostly"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ghostly" is /ˈɡoʊstli/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "ghostly"?
From Middle English gostly, gastlich, from Old English gāstlīċ (“spiritual, holy, clerical (not lay), ghastly, ghostly, spectral”), from Proto-West Germanic *gaistalīk (“spiritual”), equivalent to ghost + -ly. Cognate with Scots ghaistly, gaistly ... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "ghostly", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

gliding#24,171furnish#24,162grating#24,175gripped#24,177

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

gauntlet12 variantsfinisher12 variantseffortless12 variantsdecipher12 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list