Spooky Superstitions
This furry animal is considered to be an omen of bad fortune in many cultures, though in some it's considered a harbinger of prosperity.
What is a black cat?
A family takes an isolated job caring for a deserted hotel where the building’s past and the weather conspire to drive one parent mad. Memorably, a character writes the word "redrum" in lipstick on the bathroom door.
What is The Shining?
This comforting coffee drink is blended with steamed milk and a mix of spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove, often topped with whipped cream.
What is a pumpkin spice latte?
Twisted reflections and hidden passageways disorient visitors until they can no longer tell which way is out.
What is a hall of mirrors?
To frighten or scare. Or in modern times, a spy or informant.
Letters in yellow = lower case, green = uppercase:
S _ O _ p
What is spook?
Believed to bring bad luck if broken, travelers sometimes avoid walking under one of these when crossing the street.
What is a ladder?
A group of survivors attempt to outlast a zombie apocalypse by holing up in a shopping mall.
What is Dawn of the Dead?
Though not limited to the season, this soup is occasionally served with a grilled cheese sandwich. It's a comfort food for chilly autumn days.
What is tomato soup?
Perched on a jagged coastline, this isolated structure has a history of ships run aground and tales of impossible storms. Being so desolate and cut off from society, they're occasionally invoked in horror stories.
What is a lighthouse?
A hole dug in the ground to receive a coffin or dead body, typically marked by a stone or mound. In adjective form: somber, serious, weighty.
Letters in yellow = lowercase, uppercase = green:
G _ v _ r
What is grave?
In folklore, placing one of these above a doorway is said to ward off witches and evil spirits.
What is a horseshoe?
Children in a small town face a decades‑old evil that returns through the drains and feeds on fear, forcing them to confront it together as teenagers. It takes the guise of a creature of whimsy which nowadays seems inexorably creepy to many.
What is It?
Crisp pastry pockets filled with tart fruit and spices, traditionally made when crops are ripe for harvest.
What is a turnover?
Rows of weathered stones, low fog at dawn, and local tales of otherworldly lights between the trees make this a place people avoid after sunset. A "pet" version of one of these is the title of a Stephen King novel.
What is a cemetary?
An evil spirit or phantom, especially one supposed to rob graves and feed on dead bodies. Alternatively, a person with a macabre sense of humor or unsettling interest in death and demise.
Letters in yellow = lowercase, green = uppercase:
G _ l _ o
What is ghoul?
Some sailors considered it deadly to whistle on deck because it might summon one of these supernatural entities who lures ships to disaster.
What is a ghost / what is a sea spirit / siren?
A secret‑bearing stranger at a lonely roadside motel sets off a cascade of paranoia and murder that exposes the proprietor’s unstable mind. A harrowing scene depicts a stabbing in a shower.
What is Psycho?
A hot, fragrant baked dessert made from grated root vegetable, often paired with cream cheese frosting.
What is a carrot cake?
Dense trees, shifting trails, and stories of time behaving strangely lead travelers to lose direction and return changed by the experience. A videogame called Slender depicts the folk character Slenderman stalking the player through this locale.
What is a haunted forest/woods?
Strange, frightening, spine-chilling.
Letters in lowercase = yellow, uppercase = green:
r _ R e _
What is eerie?
An older, more romantic, superstition says that if you sleep with one of these under your pillow you will see the face of your future spouse in a dream.
What is a clove of garlic?
After a sudden death, a family’s grief exposes a hidden legacy of ritual, hallucination, and escalating violence centered on their home. A mysterious coven is central to the film.
What is Hereditary?
A hearty stew of seasonal roasted squash and onions pureed until smooth, finished with a touch of cream and toasted seeds for garnish.
What is butternut squash soup?
An underground network of narrow chambers and bone‑lined corridors beneath a city where torchlight reveals carved names of the long dead. Visitors report impossible footsteps and distant whispers echoing from the stone walls.
What are catacombs?
Borrowed from Old English, it colloquially means a spectre or spirit that haunts a locale. It can also denote an unfortunate individual.
Letters in yellow = lowercase, green = uppercase:
_ _ g t i
What is wight?