| Item |
Match |
Pronunciation |
Comments |
| trick or treat |
What children say when they come to your door asking for sweets/candies |
/trɪk ə tri:t/ |
Children dress up in costumes and visit people's houses in search of sweets (British English) or candies (American English). They knock on the door and say "trick or treat", and they are given sweets. The idea is that if you don't TREAT them, they will TRICK you instead (to trick: to do something bad to you).
|
| gruesome |
repellent, horrible, bloody, macabre |
/gru:səm/ |
|
| black cat |
They are said to bring good luck in parts of the UK and Ireland. |
/blæk kæt/ |
According to folklore, black cats are said to have supernatural powers and witches often keep them as pets.
In most places, though, black cats are supposed to be unlucky (because they are associated to witches)
|
| spooky |
midly scary though often in a fun way |
/spu:kɪ/ |
|
| blood |
red liquid running through veins of people and warm blooded creatures |
/blʌd/ |
|
| evil |
malicious, bad, ill intentioned |
/i:vəl/ |
|
| nightmare |
a scary bad dream |
/naɪtmeə*/ |
|
| apparition |
A transparent, ghostly figure |
/æpərɪʃən/ |
|
| grave |
a burial space for a coffin in a cemetery |
/greɪv/ |
Also: TOMB
|
| cloak |
an outer garment or cape |
/kləʊk/ |
vampires wear a long black clock on their backs, often with a red lining
|
| bag |
a container for candy/sweets used by kids who dress up in customes to carry the sweets they collect |
/bæg/ |
|
| All Hallows Eve |
Another name for Halloween |
/ɔ:l hæləʊz i:v/ |
|
| bloodcurdling |
a chilling, scary sound often used to describe screems. Terrifying. |
/blʌd kɜ:*dlɪŋ/ |
|
| fangs |
sharp, pointy upper front teeth, designed for piercing flesh |
/fæŋgz/ |
for example, vampires have two fangs to bite people on their necks and suck blood
|
| casket |
coffin |
/kɑ:skɪt/ |
|
| cauldron |
a cooking pot used by witches to brew spells |
/kɔ:ldrən/ |
|
| costume |
a make-believe outfit worn for fun at Halloween |
/kɒstju:m/ |
also DISGUISE or FANCY DRESS
|
| to frighten |
to scare |
/tə fraɪtən/ |
|
| to scare |
to frighten a person or animal |
/tə skeə*/ |
|
| spirits |
the ghosts of dead people |
/spɪrɪts/ |
|
| bat |
a small flying mammal, with leathery wings |
/bæt/ |
According to legend, vampires are said to be able to turn into bats.
|
| creepy |
unsettling or scary |
/kri:pɪ/ |
|
| tombstone |
a large, upright stone placed at the head of a grave |
/tu:mstəʊn/ |
They often have information about the person who is buried in the grave carved into them, such as their date of birth, when they died or another information about their life.
|
| pumpkin |
an orange vegetable which is often carved and hollowed out to make Halloween lanterns |
/pʌmkɪn/ |
|
| witch |
a woman believed to have evil magical powers |
/wɪtʃ/ |
|
| banshee |
an unhappy, wailing ghost which features in Irish and Scottish folklore. |
/bænʃi:/ |
Banshees are said to appear when somebody is about to die.
|
| ghost |
undead spirit that haunts houses |
/gəʊst/ |
|
| cemetery |
a place where dead people are buried |
/semətrɪ/ |
also: GRAVEYARD
|
| scary |
something which is frightening |
/skeərɪ/ |
|
| disguise |
a costume, often worn for fun at Halloween parties by adults and children alike |
/dɪsgaɪs/ |
also: FANCY DRESS
|
| wand |
a stick used for casting magic spells |
/wɒnd/ |
|
| black |
the darkest colour and the colour of the night. |
/blæk/ |
|
| goblin |
a small, ugly, mischevious creature with a reputation for causing trouble |
/gɒblɪn/ |
|
| Wicca |
a modern pagan witchcraft religion |
/wɪkə/ |
Wicca is a pagan religion born in 20th century England though they claim to feed on old traditions in an effort to gain some credibility. It is a religion centred upon the idea of gender polarity and the worship of two deities: Moon Goddess and Horned God.
|
| Jack O'Lantern |
a lantern carved from a pumpkin with a candle inside |
/dʒæk əlæntə*n/ |
|
| sweets |
sugary treats given to children at Halloween |
/swi:ts/ |
in American English the word used is CANDIES
|
| ghoul |
a fictional flesh eating monster that is said to rob graves, according to folklore |
/gu:l/ |
|
| spider |
an insect with eight legs that spins webs |
/spaɪdə*/ |
|
| web |
spiders spin these to catch flies |
/web/ |
|
| wraith |
a Scottish word that means ghost |
/reɪθ/ |
|
| shadow |
a dark shape cast by an object positioned between a surface and a source of light |
/ʃædəʊ/ |
|
| vampire |
an undead creature who sleeps in a coffin by day and ventures out at night to drink people's blood |
/væmpaɪə*/ |
|
| horror |
shock or fright |
/hɒrə*/ |
Horror films are very popular and are often shown on television at Halloween
|
| haunted |
a place frequented by ghosts or other spirits of the death |
/hɔ:ntɪd/ |
|
| bones |
hard pieces of a person's or animal's skeleton |
/bəʊnz/ |
|
| grisly |
horrid, gruesome, bloody |
/grɪzlɪ/ |
|
| cape |
a long and voluminous outer garment, or cloak. Often worn by vampires. |
/keɪp/ |
|
| mausoleum |
an ornate, stone cemetery building, built to house the coffins of rich or famouse people |
/mɔ:səlɪəm/ |
Also for members of the same family.
|
| zombie |
a living dead (and a man-eating creature) |
/zɒmbɪ/ |
|
| coffin |
a container for a dead body; generally made of wood and lined with silk with a hinged lid |
/kɒfɪn/ |
|
| bogeyman |
a fictional scary person used to frighten children who misbehave |
/bʊgɪmæn/ |
This monster has no specific appearance in the mind of an adult or child, but is simply a non-specific embodiment of terror.
|
| corpse |
a dead body |
/kɔ:ps/ |
|
| frightening |
scary |
/fraɪtnɪŋ/ |
|
| skeleton |
the hard inner frame of a person's or an animal's body, formed from bones that join together |
/skelətən/ |
|
| gory |
bloody, macabre |
/gɔ:rɪ/ |
|
| graveyard |
a place where dead people are buried |
/greɪv jɑ:*d/ |
Also called CEMETERY
|
| werewolf |
a person who turns into a wolf whenever there is a full moon |
/weəwʊlf/ |
According to folklore, if a person is bitten by a werewolf, then they become a werewolf too.
|
| festival |
a celebration or special event |
/festɪvəl/ |
|
| monster |
a fearful, horrid imaginary creature |
/mɒnstə*/ |
|
| magic |
the ability or power to make things happen by casting spells; performing tricks |
/mædʒɪk/ |
|
| trick |
a practical joke |
/trɪk/ |
|
| prank |
a trick or practical joke |
/præŋk/ |
|
| demon |
a devil |
/di:mən/ |
|
| shock |
fright |
/fraɪt/ |
|
| candy |
sweet treats given to children at Halloween |
/kændɪ/ |
used in American English. In British English the word is SWEET
|
| moon |
large, round satellite that revolves around The Earth which can be seen in the sky at night |
/mu:n/ |
|
| phantom |
a ghostly apparition |
/fæntəm/ |
|
| treat |
a fun and unexpected surprise designed to please someone |
/tri:t/ |
|
| fiend |
a monster or demon |
/fi:nd/ |
also an old word for ENEMY
|
| witchcraft |
magic practised by witches |
/wɪtʃkrɑ:ft/ |
|
| scythe |
a long, sharp and curved blade |
/saɪð/ |
|
| ghostly |
having an appearance or nature similar to a ghost |
/gəʊstlɪ/ |
|
| wicked |
bad or evil |
/wɪkɪd/ |
|
| mummy |
a dead person who was buried wrapped in bandages |
/mʌmɪ/ |
based on the Egyptian mummies wrapped in bandages inside a sarcophagus.
|
| tomb |
a place where a dead person has been buried |
/tu:m/ |
|
| Grim Reaper |
the name traditionally used to symbolise Death |
/grɪm ri:pə*/ |
In European folklore, Death is usually depicted as a skeleton in a long black cloak, carrying a scythe.
|
| boo! |
a word which is sometimes used to frighten people when playing tricks |
/bu:/ |
|
| candle |
a wax cylinder with a wick in the middle that can be lit with a match to provide light |
/kændəl/ |
|
| devil |
an evil spirit |
/devɪl/ |
|
| broom |
a type of brush with a long wooden handle used by witches to fly, according to legend |
/brʊm/ |
Also broomstick
|
| spell |
a magic rite cast by witches |
/spel/ |
|
| lantern |
a type of lamp |
/læntə*n/ |
|
| howl |
a high pitched noise made by wolves and dogs |
/haʊl/ |
|
| skull |
the bony part of the head, attached to a person's skeleton |
/skʌl/ |
|
| warlock |
a male witch |
/wɔ:*lɒk/ |
|
