[General] spooky/ sinister

[vil]

Dear teachers,

Would you share with me your opinion concerning the interpretation of the expressions in bold in the following sentences?
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When the white figure emerged at the window, there was a spooky silence, but in a moment we recognized George and burst into laughter.[FONT=&quot][/FONT]

And the trees that surrounded the house sometimes had a slightly spooky look.

spooky = inspiring a feeling of fear; strange and frightening, sinister

I'm a big believer in synchronicity -- meaningful coincidence, or what you might call spooky coincidence.

spooky coincidence = unusual coincidence

I know that riding a spooky horse can be challenging and frustrating so here are some tips to help you understand why your horse spooks and to give you some tools to help

a spooky horse = a shy horse

There was something sinister about him that she found disturbing.

sinister = spooky, ominous


Thank you for your efforts.
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[FONT=&quot]Regards,[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]V[/FONT]

 

[Khosro]

Dear teachers,

Would you share with me your opinion concerning the interpretation of the expressions in bold in the following sentences?

When the white figure emerged at the window, there was a spooky silence, but in a moment we recognized George and burst into laughter.

And the trees that surrounded the house sometimes had a slightly spooky look.

spooky = inspiring a feeling of fear; strange and frightening, sinister

I'm a big believer in synchronicity -- meaningful coincidence, or what you might call spooky coincidence.

spooky coincidence = unusual coincidence (not just unusual but weird, strange)

I know that riding a spooky horse can be challenging and frustrating so here are some tips to help you understand why your horse spooks and to give you some tools to help

a spooky horse = a shy horse

There was something sinister about him that she found disturbing.

sinister = spooky, ominous


Thank you for your efforts.

[FONT=&quot]Regards,[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]V[/FONT]

I would not put write sinister as a synonym for spooky and vice versa. But I would write sinister as a synonym for ominous, though I am not in favour of synonyms at all!

The feeling behind calling something spooky is different from the feeling which makes us call something sinister. That's my opinion.

Have you looked up "spook" (as a verb and noun) in the dictionary?

 

[vil]

spook: Definition, Synonyms from Answers.com

[FONT=&quot]spook someone unpleasantly strange or eccentric/[/FONT] [FONT=&quot]a mental representation of some haunting experience/ a person secretly employed in espionage for a government[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]spook (v) frighten or scare, and often provoke into a violent action

spooky = sinister, frightful, ghostly, supernatural, weird, timid, fearful, easily frightened, shy
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[Raymott]

I would not put write sinister as a synonym for spooky and vice versa. But I would write sinister as a synonym for ominous, though I am not in favour of synonyms at all!

The feeling behind calling something spooky is different from the feeling which makes us call something sinister. That's my opinion.

I agree. I'm not a great fan of the concept of synonymy either.
"Spooky" sounds like a child/adolescent's word, whereas 'sinister', as you say, is more ominous.
A cat climbing past your bedroom window can be spooky. A man climbing past your bedroom window is sinister.

 

[mykwyner]

To my ear, spooky implies other-worldly, or supernatural; sinister implies evil and malicious.

 

[Khosro]

I agree. I'm not a great fan of the concept of synonymy either.
"Spooky" sounds like a child/adolescent's word, whereas 'sinister', as you say, is more ominous.
A cat climbing past your bedroom window can be spooky. A man climbing past your bedroom window is sinister.

Perhaps we can add that something which is spooky brings no real harm and is not a serious threat. That's why mykwyner also mentioned it's other-worldliness and supernaturality.

And vil, it would be usefull if you take another look at your third example with an emphasize on "I am a big believer" part.