A phantom limb is the sensation that an amputated or missing limb is still attached to the body and is moving appropriately with other body parts ( ; ; ). Approximately 50 to 80% of amputees experience these phantom sensations in their amputated limb, and the majority of these people report that the sensations are painful . Phantom sensations may also occur after the removal of body parts other than the limbs, e.g. after amputation of the breast, extraction of a tooth (phantom tooth pain) or removal of an eye (phantom eye syndrome). The missing limb often feels shorter and may feel as if it is in a distorted and painful position. Occasionally, the pain can be made worse by stress, anxiety and weather changes.

A slightly different sensation known as Phantom pains can also occur in people who are born without limbs and people who are paralyzed ( ; ). Phantom pains occur when the missing limb causes discomfort. It is often described as a burning or similarly strange sensation and can be extremely agonizing for some people, but the exact sensation differs widely for individuals. Other induced sensations include warmth, cold, itching, squeezing, tightness and tingling ( ; ).

Phantom Limb is a fictional villain on the Adult Swim show The Venture Bros. He is a parody of articulate and "gentlemanly" supervillains, such as Ernst Stavro Blofeld of the James Bond books and films. His code name is a reference to phantom limb syndrome, and his true name (Hamilton G. Fantomos) may be a reference to the French supervillain Fantômas, as well as the science fiction detective Gil Hamilton. His costume also bears a strong visual resemblance to the Lee Falk comic strip hero The Phantom.