Phrase guide

ghost at the feast

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A presence that mars one's enjoyment by causing guilt or reviving unwelcome memories.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

After Banquo in Shakespeare's Macbeth (1606); Macbeth murders Banquo, whose mutilated body subsequently appears at a feast as a ghost, unseen by all but Macbeth.