1.a kind of religious song originated by Blacks in the southern United States
2.concerned with sacred matters or religion or the church;
religious texts
3.concerned with or affecting the spirit or soul;
a spiritual approach to life
4.lacking material body or form or substance;
spiritual beings
5.like or being a phantom;
a ghostly face at the window
灵歌 spiritual 美国黑人宗教礼拜歌曲。内容大多反映黑人的悲惨处境与希望寄托。灵歌的旋律风格简单,多数为五声大调式或七声小调式,节奏中常出现切分音。常采用对答方式进行演唱,可以部分或全部即兴演唱。除对爵士乐产生过一定影响之外,灵歌和布鲁斯一样,是美国黑人民歌的一种。