haunts
Lingers like specters
Haunts are places someone frequents—their regular spots, familiar territory: We visited his old haunts from college, the usual haunts of artists and writers.
The word carries a sense of belonging or habitual return.
As a verb, to haunt is to visit repeatedly, whether as a ghost lingering in a place or a memory that won't leave: The melody haunted her for days.
Resembling a specter
- spectralGhostlike or wavelength-related
- phantomInsubstantial apparition
- apparitionVisible supernatural manifestation
- poltergeistDisruptive supernatural entity
specter · wraith · spirit · possessed · cursed · séance · paranormal · otherworldly
Frequented gathering place
- spotMark or location
- diveHeadfirst water entry
- watering holePlace for drinks
- jointShared by multiple parties
stomping ground · retreat · den · lair · hideaway · regular · local · favorite
Remains beyond expected time
- persistsCarries on stubbornly
- shadowsDark areas from blocked light
- followsComes after another
- plaguesMass outbreaks of disease
troubles · dogs · pursues · nags · torments · besets · burdens · weighs
Disturbingly strange
- creepyDisturbingly strange
- chillingCausing fear or cold
- macabreDisturbing, death-obsessed
- sinisterThreateningly suggestive of harm
ominous · foreboding · uncanny · gothic · eldritch · shadowy · mysterious · dreadful
Persistent mental attachment
- preoccupationAbsorbing mental focus
- obsessionPersistent, intrusive preoccupation
- ruminationProlonged, repetitive thinking
- intrusiveInvading others' privacy
recurring · inescapable · consuming · tormenting · relentless · nagging · persistent · unshakeable
Involuntary past memory
- reminiscenceRecalling past experiences
- recollectionRecalled mental image
- remembranceAct of holding something in mind
- nostalgiaLonging for the past
bygone · wistful · bittersweet · regret · past · yesteryear · sentimental · melancholy
ghostly
Resembling a specter
- spectralGhostlike or wavelength-related
- phantomInsubstantial apparition
- apparitionVisible supernatural manifestation
poltergeist · specter · wraith · spirit · possessed · cursed · séance · paranormal · otherworldly · undead
hangout
Frequented gathering place
- spotMark or location
- diveHeadfirst water entry
- watering holePlace for drinks
joint · stomping ground · retreat · den · lair · hideaway · regular · local · favorite · frequented
lingers
Remains beyond expected time
plagues · troubles · dogs · pursues · nags · torments · besets · burdens · weighs · preys
eerie
Disturbingly strange
sinister · ominous · foreboding · uncanny · gothic · eldritch · shadowy · mysterious · dreadful · unsettling
fixation
Persistent mental attachment
- preoccupationAbsorbing mental focus
- obsessionPersistent, intrusive preoccupation
- ruminationProlonged, repetitive thinking
intrusive · recurring · inescapable · consuming · tormenting · relentless · nagging · persistent · unshakeable · compulsive
flashback
Involuntary past memory
- reminiscenceRecalling past experiences
- recollectionRecalled mental image
- remembranceAct of holding something in mind
nostalgia · bygone · wistful · bittersweet · regret · past · yesteryear · sentimental · melancholy · longing
- apparitionsghosts, phantoms, specters, wraiths, shades
- ghostsapparitions, ghosts, apparition, phantoms, specter
- comes backreturns, reappears, reemerges, recurs, bounces back
- undeadzombie, vampire, ghost, lich, skeleton
- vicinitiesneighborhood, district, area, locale, surroundings
- Asian Folkloreyokai, kitsune, oni, tengu, folktales
- haunted houseDwelling believed spirit-inhabited
- haunted mansionSpirit-occupied grand residence
- come back to hauntPast mistakes resurface painfully
- haunted mazeAttraction with scares, turns
- haunted locationsSites of alleged paranormal activity
- haunted sitesPlaces with reported ghosts