Re: Soul of a dead person?

Ulrich Schwaderlap wrote:
> Hello,
>
> I am not an native speaker. Can someony please explain
> the difference between:
>
> Ghost
> Phantom
> Wraith
> Spectre
> Spirit
>
> My dictionary translates these words all to
> the same word.
>
> Thanking ou in advance,
> Uli

You just have to accept that English has more words than German. Some have

been borrowed from other languages, and often acquire gradations of
meaning, 
whereas others are just synonyms.

"Ghost" is from Germanic, "phantom" is from French. "Wraith" is Scottish, 
with possible Norse origins. "Spectre" is from Latin, via French, as is 
"spirit", which originally meant the same as "ghost", which now has a 
different meaning - except in the phrase "Holy Ghost".
-- 
John Briggs