WRAITH

ghost, shade, spook, wraith, specter, spectre

(noun) a mental representation of some haunting experience; “he looked like he had seen a ghost”; “it aroused specters from his past”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Noun

wraith (plural wraiths)

A ghost or specter, especially a person's likeness seen just after their death.

Synonym: Thesaurus:ghost

Source: Wiktionary

Wraith, n. Etym: [Scot. wraith, warth; probably originally, a guardian angel, from Icel. vörthr a warden, guardian, akin to E. ward. See Ward a guard.]

1. An apparition of a person in his exact likeness, seen before death, or a little after; hence, an apparition; a specter; a vision; an unreal image. [Scot.] She was uncertain if it were the gypsy or her wraith. Sir W. Scott. O, hollow wraith of dying fame. Tennyson.

2. Sometimes, improperly, a spirit thought to preside over the waters; -- called also water wraith. M. G. Lewis.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition