ghoul
n. spirit, ghost, demon who robs graves and eats corpses; one who robs graves; one who enjoys disgusting or revolting things | ||||
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Ghoul definition was found in categories: Language, Idioms & Slang(4) Religion & Spirituality(1) Arts & Humanities(1) Encyclopedia(1)
Ghoul Definition from Language, Idioms & Slang Dictionaries & Glossaries
| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) |
Ghoul
(n.)
An imaginary evil being among Eastern nations, which was supposed to feed upon human bodies.
(n.)
An imaginary evil being among Eastern nations, which was supposed to feed upon human bodies.
| WordNet 2.0 |
ghoul
Noun
1. someone who takes bodies from graves and sells them for anatomical dissection
(synonym) graverobber, body snatcher
(hypernym) thief, stealer
2. an evil spirit or ghost
(hypernym) evil spirit
Noun
1. someone who takes bodies from graves and sells them for anatomical dissection
(synonym) graverobber, body snatcher
(hypernym) thief, stealer
2. an evil spirit or ghost
(hypernym) evil spirit
| The Devil's Dictionary |
GHOUL
Ghoul, (n.)
A demon addicted to the reprehensible habit of devouring the dead. The existence of ghouls has been disputed by that class of controversialists who are more concerned to deprive the world of comforting beliefs than to give it anything good in their place. In 1640 Father Secchi saw one in a cemetery near Florence and frightened it away with the sign of the cross. He describes it as gifted with many heads an an uncommon allowance of limbs, and he saw it in more than one place at a time. The good man was coming away from dinner at the time and explains that if he had not been "heavy with eating" he would have seized the demon at all hazards. Atholston relates that a ghoul was caught by some sturdy peasants in a churchyard at Sudbury and ducked in a horsepond. (He appears to think that so distinguished a criminal should have been ducked in a tank of rosewater.) The water turned at once to blood "and so contynues unto ys daye." The pond has since been bled with a ditch. As late as the beginning of the fourteenth century a ghoul was cornered in the crypt of the cathedral at Amiens and the whole population surrounded the place. Twenty armed men with a priest at their head, bearing a crucifix, entered and captured the ghoul, which, thinking to escape by the stratagem, had transformed itself to the semblance of a well known citizen, but was nevertheless hanged, drawn and quartered in the midst of hideous popular orgies. The citizen whose shape the demon had assumed was so affected by the sinister occurrence that he never again showed himself in Amiens and his fate remains a mystery.
Ghoul, (n.)
A demon addicted to the reprehensible habit of devouring the dead. The existence of ghouls has been disputed by that class of controversialists who are more concerned to deprive the world of comforting beliefs than to give it anything good in their place. In 1640 Father Secchi saw one in a cemetery near Florence and frightened it away with the sign of the cross. He describes it as gifted with many heads an an uncommon allowance of limbs, and he saw it in more than one place at a time. The good man was coming away from dinner at the time and explains that if he had not been "heavy with eating" he would have seized the demon at all hazards. Atholston relates that a ghoul was caught by some sturdy peasants in a churchyard at Sudbury and ducked in a horsepond. (He appears to think that so distinguished a criminal should have been ducked in a tank of rosewater.) The water turned at once to blood "and so contynues unto ys daye." The pond has since been bled with a ditch. As late as the beginning of the fourteenth century a ghoul was cornered in the crypt of the cathedral at Amiens and the whole population surrounded the place. Twenty armed men with a priest at their head, bearing a crucifix, entered and captured the ghoul, which, thinking to escape by the stratagem, had transformed itself to the semblance of a well known citizen, but was nevertheless hanged, drawn and quartered in the midst of hideous popular orgies. The citizen whose shape the demon had assumed was so affected by the sinister occurrence that he never again showed himself in Amiens and his fate remains a mystery.
| hEnglish - advanced version |
ghoul
ghoul
\ghoul\ (?), n. [per. gh&?;l an imaginary sylvan demon, supposed to devour men and animals: cf. ar. gh&?;l, f. goule.] an imaginary evil being among eastern nations, which was supposed to feed upon human bodies. [written also ghole]
ghoul
\ghoul\ (?), n. [per. gh&?;l an imaginary sylvan demon, supposed to devour men and animals: cf. ar. gh&?;l, f. goule.] an imaginary evil being among eastern nations, which was supposed to feed upon human bodies. [written also ghole]
Ghoul Definition from Religion & Spirituality Dictionaries & Glossaries
| Rakefet |
Ghoul
Ghoul [from Arabic ghul, ghuwal] In popular Arabic lore a class of evil beings, haunting the mountains and woods and preying upon mankind and animals. More specifically, the astral or astral-physical entities haunting cemeteries or burial grounds, with an eye upon the danger to humans or animals who come into contact with them. These Arabic ghouls are earth-bound kama-rupas of the most debased and material type, and parallel the Hindu preta of the lowest type, or even the pisachas, etc.
Ghoul [from Arabic ghul, ghuwal] In popular Arabic lore a class of evil beings, haunting the mountains and woods and preying upon mankind and animals. More specifically, the astral or astral-physical entities haunting cemeteries or burial grounds, with an eye upon the danger to humans or animals who come into contact with them. These Arabic ghouls are earth-bound kama-rupas of the most debased and material type, and parallel the Hindu preta of the lowest type, or even the pisachas, etc.
Ghoul Definition from Arts & Humanities Dictionaries & Glossaries
| The Harry Potter Glossary |
Ghoul
A creature that lives in attics and bangs on pipes while groanin.
A creature that lives in attics and bangs on pipes while groanin.
Ghoul Definition from Encyclopedia Dictionaries & Glossaries
| Wikipedia English - The Free Encyclopedia |
Ghoul
A ghoul is a monster from ancient Arabian folklore that dwells in burial grounds and other uninhabited places. The English word comes from the Arabic name for the creature: الغول ghūl, which literally means "demon". The ghul is a devilish type of jinn believed to be sired by Iblis.
The female form is given as "ghouleh" in Muhawi and Kanaana (see ref below). The plural is "ghilan".
Ghul is also the name for a desert-dwelling shapeshifting demon that can assume the guise of an animal, especially a hyena. It lures unwary travellers into the desert wastes to slay and devour them. The creature also preys on young children, robs graves, and eats the dead. Because of the latter habit, the word ghoul is sometimes used to refer to an ordinary human such as a grave robber, or to anyone who delights in the macabre. The word "ghoul" has also been used to describe cannibals such as Jeffrey Dahmer.. The term "ghoul" may also be used as slang, particularly in Ireland, to describe a person who acts in an odd and/or humorous manner.
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