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# spook

noun (a spook, spooks); verb (spook, spooks, spooked, spooking); adjective spooky

«spook» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. (informal) A spook is a ghost. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/#m1)
2. To spook someone or an animal is to frighten or startle them suddenly. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/#m2)
3. (informal, US) A spook is a spy. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/#m3)
4. (offensive) "Spook" has also been used as a nasty insult for Black people; it should not be used about people. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/#m4)

### In the lessons

In stories and at Halloween, spooks and spooky houses are fun scary things. In nature and farm life, a sudden noise can spook a horse, which may bolt; that is a safety point around horses. In spy stories, spooks are secret agents.

### Examples

- The old house was said to be full of spooks. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/#x1)
- The loud bang spooked the horse and it ran off. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/#x2)
- Don't creep up behind me — you spooked me! [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/#x3)
- We dressed up as spooks for Halloween. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/#x4)
- The film was about spooks working for the secret service. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/#x5)
- The cat was spooked by its own reflection. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/#x6)
- Walk calmly near horses so you don't spook them. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/#x7)

### Note

Adjective: spooky ("a spooky story"). Usually informal. The insult sense is offensive and must never be used. "Spooked" means suddenly frightened.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «spook» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/spook/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«spook» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/spook.html) on Mova free.