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Recent Examples of incubus
The Devil’s Museum, a satellite of the main collection, has amassed more than 3,000 depictions of demons, evil spirits and incubus from around the world.
—
Joe Yogerst, Forbes.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Your fame sits beside you like an incubus, and people are embarrassed and want to leave the room.
—Candace Bushnell, Vogue, 23 Feb. 2025
This meaning is visualized in Henry Fuseli’s 1781 painting The Nightmare, which shows a woman sleeping peacefully on a couch while a nauseating monster—an incubus—sits portentously on her abdomen, unbeknownst to her.
—Time, 28 Dec. 2022
As Tommy’s experiences in the tunnels of France mark a continued incubus for his character, with visions of being pulled into the mud, the sounding of the bell coincides with his own inner peace.
—Josh St. Clair, Men's Health, 13 June 2022
An incubus is the male variety (and also that band).
—Angie Jones, Glamour, 17 Mar. 2022
Joe Yogerst, Forbes.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Your fame sits beside you like an incubus, and people are embarrassed and want to leave the room.
—Candace Bushnell, Vogue, 23 Feb. 2025
This meaning is visualized in Henry Fuseli’s 1781 painting The Nightmare, which shows a woman sleeping peacefully on a couch while a nauseating monster—an incubus—sits portentously on her abdomen, unbeknownst to her.
—Time, 28 Dec. 2022
As Tommy’s experiences in the tunnels of France mark a continued incubus for his character, with visions of being pulled into the mud, the sounding of the bell coincides with his own inner peace.
—Josh St. Clair, Men's Health, 13 June 2022
An incubus is the male variety (and also that band).
—Angie Jones, Glamour, 17 Mar. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for incubus
Noun
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On top of the three demon hunters (Rumi, Mira and Zoey), Lazzareschi also offers male performers resembling the Saja Boys (the rival group in the film) that teach kids breakdancing.—
Carlos Aguilar,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Apr. 2026
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According to ancient legend, if a queen fails this task, the demon Ovaria will dethrone her, and condemn her to life as Keeper of the Menstruary.—
Todd Spangler,
Variety,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Weaving, even more than before, makes Grace an ingénue gone banshee.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
14 Mar. 2026
-
The bond between a rider and their banshee doesn't break, and chances are your bond with this two-figure set won't either.—
Fran Ruiz,
Space.com,
19 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
Such a designation, evidently, would save agents from wasting time chasing phantoms.—
Adam Ciralsky,
Vanity Fair,
19 Mar. 2026
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The Stygiomedusa gigantea, commonly known as the giant phantom jelly, was filmed at 250 meters below the surface.—
Michelle Del Rey,
USA Today,
4 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
At the title track’s video shoot, Michael gives directorial instructions in full ghoul makeup.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
24 Apr. 2026
-
Created by a number of its stars, Ghosts originated on the BBC in 2019, following a group of ghouls from different historical periods haunting a country house while sharing the house with its new living occupants.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
At her very best, Emily behaves like a petulant pre-adolescent spoiled imp.—
Liza Lentini,
SPIN,
14 Apr. 2026
-
The second was more bizarre: that some nasty imp in my psyche might decide that jumping was a good idea.—
Rosecrans Baldwin,
Travel + Leisure,
10 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The score by Joseph Bishara is shivery with chorales that moan like wraiths in the wind.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Pilots can see bad weather lurking in the distance hours before takeoff, glowing like a wraith on their digital maps.—
Burkhard Bilger,
New Yorker,
2 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
With the trademarks, Swift and McConaughey likely hope that the specter of federal lawsuits will deter misuse.—
Winston Cho,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Apr. 2026
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Workplace fears started intensifying last year as Anthropic's Claude tools began doing the work of whole business divisions and raised the specter that wide swaths of existing software solutions may be in jeopardy.—
Jennifer Elias,
CNBC,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
There certainly seem to be apparitions in this music, some presence apart from the four musicians and the throngs of fans, which is intensified by the visceral collision of so many sounds.—
Stephen M. Deusner,
Pitchfork,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Those themes are alive here, as the ghosts who visit Depp’s Scrooge are intricate, terrifying apparitions not suitable for the whole family.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Incubus.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/incubus. Accessed 3 May. 2026.
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