ghost image

noun

Any undesired image appearing at the image plane of an optical system; either a false image of the desired object, or an out-of-focus image of a bright source of light in the field of the optical system.

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Meanings

ghost image1

nounghost image (plural ghost images)

plural ghost images

  1. artsAny undesired image appearing at the image plane of an optical system; either a false image of the desired object, or an out-of-focus image of a bright source of light in the field of the optical system.

ghost image2

nounghost image (plural ghost images)

plural ghost images

  1. computingA copy of all the contents of a hard drive, used as a backup.

Origin

ghost image · noun

From ghost (noun sense 3, via noun sense 4).

Full word history & related roots →

ghost image · noun

After the Norton Ghost disk-cloning and backup software tool, itself an initialism of general hardware-oriented system transfer.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Finnish haamukuva
  • haamukuvaundesired image
French image fantôme
  • image fantômeundesired image
Hungarian szellemkép
  • szellemképundesired image
Cite this entry
APA

ghost image. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ghost%20image

MLA

“ghost image.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ghost%20image. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ghost image,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ghost%20image.

Source: ghost image on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.