Definition of "incubus" [in•cu•bus]

• An evil spirit supposed to descend upon and have sexual intercourse with women as they sleep. (noun)
• A nightmare. (noun)
• An oppressive or nightmarish burden. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The incubus is the one that came through the Doorway to find us."
• "So, unless it straggles back again and Father gets rid of his incubus, which isn't at all likely, the eldest daughter of the noble house of"
• "Dufour, _Histoire de la Prostitution_, vol. v, Ch. XXV, Saint-André, physician-in-ordinary to the French King, pointed out in 1725 that the incubus was a dream."