Word of the Day March 32026 [archive]

ghostghostwrite(verb)

write for someone else

"How many books have you ghostwritten so far?"

ghostwrite(Verb)

To write under the name of another (especially literary works).

Maria would rather not ghostwrite for a living because she finds it a thankless task.

ghostwrite(Verb)

To author a literary work or speech in the place of another.

The president has someone to ghostwrite his addresses.

ghostwrite

A ghostwriter is hired to write literary or journalistic worksspeechesor other texts that are officially credited to another person as the author. Celebritiesexecutivesparticipants in timely news storiesand political leaders often hire ghostwriters to draft or edit autobiographiesmemoirsmagazine articlesor other written material. Memoir ghostwriters often pride themselves in "disappearing" when impersonating others since such disappearance signals the quality of their craftsmanship. In musicghostwriters are often used to write songslyricsand instrumental pieces. Screenplay authors can also use ghostwriters to either edit or rewrite their scripts to improve them. Usuallythere is a confidentiality clause in the contract between the ghostwriter and the credited author that obligates the former to remain anonymous. Sometimes the ghostwriter is acknowledged by the author or publisher for their writing serviceseuphemistically called a "researcher" or "research assistant"but often the ghostwriter is not credited. Ghostwriting (or simply "ghosting") also occurs in other creative fields. Composers have long hired ghostwriters to help them to write musical pieces and songs; Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is an example of a well-known composer who was paid to ghostwrite music for wealthy patrons. Ghosting also occurs in popular music. A pop music ghostwriter writes lyrics and a melody in the of the credited musician. In hip hop musicthe increasing use of ghostwriters by high-profile hip-hop stars has led to controversy. In the visual artsit is not uncommon in either fine art or commercial art such as comics for a number of assistants to do work on a piece that is credited to a single artist; Andy Warhol engaged in this practicesupervising an assembly line silk screen process for his artwork. Howeverwhen credit is established for the writerthe acknowledgment of their contribution is public domain and the writer in question would not be considered a ghostwriter.

ghostwrite

To ghostwrite is to write a piece of worksuch as a bookan articleor a speechon behalf of another person who is named as the author. The ghostwriter does not receive any acknowledgment in the published workhence the term "ghost." This practice is common in various fields including literaturemusicfilmand even politics.

• Author
• Authorship

Chaldean Numerology

The numerical value of ghostwrite in Chaldean Numerology is: 4

Pythagorean Numerology

The numerical value of ghostwrite in Pythagorean Numerology is: 9