Definition

1. Noun:
   • A word form that has entered the language through the perpetuation of an error: A "ghost word" is a word that appears in dictionaries or other reference works but has no real currency in the language. It exists solely because of a mistake, such as a typographical error, a misreading, or a misunderstanding by a lexicographer or scholar, and was never genuinely used in writing or speech.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The word 'dord' is a famous ghost word that appeared in a dictionary due to a misinterpretation of an abbreviation.
  • Lexicographers must be vigilant to avoid including ghost words in new editions of the dictionary.
  • Scholars discovered that the term was a ghost word, created by a scribal error centuries ago.

Advanced Usage

• "To be exposed as a ghost word": To be revealed as a word that originated from an error.
  • After extensive research, the alleged medieval term was exposed as a ghost word.

Variants and Related Words

• Ghost (noun, verb): While "ghost" has many meanings (spirit, faint trace), in this specific compound "ghost word," it metaphorically indicates something that appears to exist but lacks substance or reality.
• Mountweazel (noun): A specific type of ghost word or fictitious entry deliberately placed in a reference work to detect copyright infringement.

Synonyms

• Fictitious entry: An item inserted into a reference work that is not genuine.
• Nihilartikel (noun): A synonym for a fictitious or ghost entry, especially in encyclopedias.

Related Phrases and Concepts

• Dictionary error: A broad term for any mistake in a dictionary, which can include the creation of ghost words.
• Lexicographical ghost: Another way to refer to a ghost word, emphasizing its origin in dictionary-making.

Noun

1. a word form that has entered the language through the perpetuation of an error