Phobia
List
List of Phobias
A
Note About This Phobia List
Phobia Categories
Phobia Etymology
History
of This Phobia List
What
Makes This Phobia List Different?
Skip The Comments and Give Me The List!
A
Note About This Phobia List
This list
of phobias is included primarily for entertainment purposes (have
fun reading the comments!). From a peak performance perspective, finding
another label to put on yourself is not usually helpful. However, it
can provide you with a sense of comfort in knowing that you aren't alone.
This
list of phobias is not intended to be a complete reference. If you have
any suggestions for additions, corrections, or changes of the content,
please click the "Customer
Service" link to contact me.
Phobia
Categories
Medically, phobias are classified as an anxiety disorder. Phobias
are generally divided into five types:
- Phobias of animals
(snakes, spiders, dogs)
- Phobias of the
natural environment (thunder, lightening, water)
- Phobias of blood
/ injection / injury ( seeing blood, getting a shot, going to
the dentist, or having a medical procedure)
- Phobias that
are situational (high places, driving, flying)
- Other
phobias are phobias that don't fit into any of the other four categories
(fears of swallowing, blushing, or vomiting).
Phobia
Etymology
The word "phobia"
comes from the Greek "phobos" which means fear. The prefix of the word
for each of the phobias should, technically, also have a Greek
origin. However, many names of phobias use a root from classic Latin
and sometimes other languages. "Etymology" is the Greek word
for "I know more words than you do."
History
of This Phobia List
I started building a list of phobias when I was
in the 7th grade back in 1982. My Reading teacher, Mr. Salinas, gave
us a list of 25 phobias as part of a vocabulary-building exercise, and
that sparked my interest in words and word roots. After I started helping
people eliminate fears and phobias in 1995, it became a practical need
for me to be familiar with various names of phobias that people would
ask me about. The list started building from there.
What
Makes This Phobia List Different?
Anyone can
make up a phobia list by taking the Greek or Latin root and adding "phobia"
to the end. You can search for "phobia list" and find a number
of websites that have a phobia list with varying degrees of completeness
and usefullness. This site different in several ways:
1)
A distinction is made between the phobias typically recognized by the
medical profession and those phobias which are not. The phobias
bolded and listed in this color font
are the phobias typically recognized by the medical profession.
2)
Since I enjoy playing with words, I've (playfully) added a number of
phobias to this list, or in my comments about other phobias. Yes, I
made them up. Just so you'll know, these phobias are listed in this
font.
3) Finally,
and perhaps most importantly, this website also offers a solution
for those visitors who may be suffering from a phobia.
Phobia
List
A
B
C D
E F
G H
I J
K L
M N
O P
Q R
S T
U V
W X
Y Z
Phobia
List
"A" Phobias
Ablutophobia:
fear of washing or bathing. Not to be confused with Blutophobia
(fear of Bluto), which is what Popeye's girlfriend Olive Oil had a case
of.
Acarophobia:
fear of itching or of the insects that cause itching.
Acerophobia:
fear of experiencing a sour taste.
Achluophobia:
fear of the dark. Don't confuse this one with Achoophobia,
which is the fear of sneezing.
Acousticophobia:
fear of noise or sounds, sometimes one's own voice. It's not unusual
for people to disike the sound of their own voice when listening to
a recording of it, however, that's not a phobia or fear, just a basic
insecurity. From the Greek "akoustikos" which means "pertaining
to hearing.".
Acrophobia:
fear of acrobats. Just kidding. Really, it's the fear of heights. People
who suffer from acrophobia may feel like they are being pulled toward
the edge of a high place. This one is on the Phobia List of Top 10 most
popular phobias. Acrophobia comes from the Greek word "acron," meaning
height.
Aeroacrophobia:
fear of open high places. If you've got this phobia, you definitely
won't take a holiday visiting Masada.
Aeronausiphobia:
fear of vomiting after experiencing airsickness.
Aerophobia:
fear of flying.
This one is on the Phobia List of Top 10 most popular  phobias.
Did you notice the serious decline in air travel after the events of
9/11? Aerophobia also means an irrational fear of fresh air or drafts
of air. Aerophobia comes from the Greek "aero," which means air or gas.
Also referred to as aviatophobia or aviophobia. Sometimes aerophobia
is also referred to as being the fear of swallowing air, or airborne
substances.
Agliophobia:
fear of pain.
Agoraphobia:
fear of public
places, open areas, or fear of crowds. Also the fear of leaving or travelling
too far from a safe place, This one is on the Phobia List of Top 10
most popular phobias. People with agoraphobia feel anxious if they even
think about  being
trapped in a situation where it might be difficult to leave. People
with agoraphobia usually avoid the situations which trigger anxiety
or panic. Agoraphobia is highly variable in severity. People with mild
agoraphobia often live normal lives by avoiding anxiety-provoking situations.
But, in the most severe cases, the victims may be incapacitated and
never leave their house. If I work in person with someone who has agoraphobia
I always make sure they are highly motivated to overcome the fear. .
. I don't make housecalls! (That is a joke. . . ) Agoraphobia comes
from the Greek "agora," meaning marketplace.
Agraphobia:
fear of sexual abuse. Also known as Contreltophobia
Agrizoophobia:
fear of wild animals.
Agyrophobia:
fear of crossing
streets, highways and other thoroughfares; or fear of streets themselves.
Agyrophobia comes from the Greek "gyrus" meaning turning or whirling.
Aibohphobia:
A joke term for the fear of palindromes (you can figure it out!).
Aichmophobia:
fear of needles or pointed objects. From the Greek word "aichme,"
which means point. This fear can be life threatening if it prevents
the sufferer from seeking needed medical attention.
Ailurophobia:
fear of cats.
People with ailurophobia may fear being scratched or bitten by a cat
or they may fear cats altogether, sometimes as a result of being exposed
to too much Halloween folklore or general superstition. From the Greek
"ailouros," meaning cat. Alternate spellings: "Aelurophobia," "elurophobia."
"Galeophobia" is an alternate name for fear of cats.
Albuminurophobia:
fear of kidney disease. Albumin is a water soluable protein that can
occur in various tissues and fluids. Its presence in urine is often
symptomatic of kidney disease. From the Latus albus, which means "
white."
Alektorophobia:
fear of chickens. On the other hand, many chickens are afflicted with
ColonolSandersphobia.
Algophobia:
fear of pain.
Free advice: don't work with any therapist who wants to use exposure
therapy for this one. Alogophobia comes from the Greek word "algos,"
meaning pain. I found one website where they had mislabeld algophobia
as being the fear of garlic (really!). Maybe they have a lot of vampires
as clients? The modern Greek word for garlic (according to a wikipedia
article) is "skordo" so I think fear of garlic would actually
be "skordophobia". I'm
not sure how they got that mixed up. At any rate they mentioned that
working one-on-one with their trained staff, the treatment should take
no more than 10 hours and cost was listed as "$1,497 USD (and up)."
Alliumphobia:
fear of garlic. In vampires this phobia is second only to crucifixaphobia
(and in at least one parallel universe BuffyPhobia).
Actually there is a real term for the fear of crucifixes: staurophobia.
"Allium" is the Latin word for garlic. However, being pure
to form, I believe the Greek root "skordo" (garlic) would
be more appropriate.
Allodoxaphobia:
fear of opinions. This is common in extreme fundamentalist groups where
free-thinking can be dangerous to their rigid belief-structure.
Altophobia:
fear of singers who have a vocal range somewhere between a tenor and
a mezzo-soprano. Just kidding! It's really the fear of heights, which
is more commonly referred to as acrophobia (see above).
Amathophobia:
fear of dust.
From the Greek "amathos," meaning sand. Mario Buatta, a well-known interior
designer said "Dust is a protective coating for fine furniture."
Amaxophobia:
fear of riding in a car.
Ambulophobia:
fear of walking. If you have this phobia and amaxophobia, you're pretty
much not going anywhere.
Amnesiphobia:
fear of amnesia. If you actually come down with amnesia, the bright
side is that at least chances are good you'll forget that you have this
phobia!
Amychophobia:
fear of scratches or being scratched.
Anablephobia:
fear of looking up.
Anatidaephobia
: (joke phobia) the fear that somewhere, somehow, a duck is watching
you. This one originates from a "Far Side" cartoon by Gary
Larson. See Luposlipaphobia for another one.
Ancraophobia:
fear of wind.
Androphobia:
fear of men.
"Androphobia" is derived from the Greek "andros" (man).
Androidophobia:
fear of androids or robots.
Anemophobia:
fear of air drafts or wind.
Anemophobia:
fear of wind. Klaoanemophobia is
the fear of breaking wind (which quite a number of people have in social
settings).
Anestesiaphobia:
fear of loss of sensation, or fear of being under anestesia, usually
during surgery. From the Greek root "anaisthesia" which means
insensibility.
Anginophobia:
fear of angina, choking or narrowness.
Anglophobia:
fear of England, or of the English culture. There are several rare sub-categories
of this phobia, including Beatlephobia,
MontyPtyhonophobia, and GodSaveTheQueenophobia.
Angrophobia:
fear of becoming angry. Bruce Banner had a major case of this ("Don't
make me angry - you won't like me when I'm angry.") For those of
you who don't remember (or don't know), Bruce Banner is the fictional
comic book character who was exposed to gamma radiation which resulted
in his transforming into the "Hulk" when he was angry or under
stress.
Ankylophobia:
fear of joint immobility.
Anthophobia:
fear of flowers,
or parts of flowers. Dating someone with anthophobia can save you a
lot of money around Valentine's day, birthdays, and other holidays.
"Anthophobia" is derived from the Greek word "anthos" which means flower.
Anthropophobia:
fear of people or society.
Antlophobia:
fear of floods. After all of the coverage of the Tsunami and Hurricane
Katrina in 2005, I would not be surprised if a lot of people developed
this phobia.
Anuptaphobia:
fear of not getting married, or of staying single. From the Latin "nuptialis"
which means wedding.
Apeirophobia:
fear of infinity.
Aphenphosmphobia:
fear of being touched.
Apiphobia:
fear of bees.
The word "apiphobia" comes from "api-" from the Greek "apis" meaning
bee. Apiphobia is also called melissophobia, since "melissa" is another
Greek word for bee.
Apotemnophobia:
fear of persons with amputations.
Aquaphobia:
fear of water.
People with aquaphobia experience anxiety when in or near oceans, rivers,
lakes, creeks or even a bathtub or shower. Boating and swimming are
no fun. Forget scuba diving altogether. A rare sub-form known as aquamanophobia
is the fear of the DC Comics superhero Aquaman. The word is from the
Latin "aqua," which means water.
Arachibutyrophobia:
fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of the mouth. This one was
on my list of phobias that my 7th grade Reading techer gave me!
Arachnophobia:
fear of spiders.
Arachnophobia is ranked number one on the Phobia List of Top 10 most
popular phobias. One medical site suggested that arachnophobia is really
"fear of the unknown, since most spiders are harmless." Remember
that phobias are, by definition, an irrational fear. We may use logic
to justify or validate the fear, but the all the logic in the world
will not abate the emotional response. "Arachnophobia" is derived from
the Greek "arachne" meaning spider.
Arithmophobia:
fear of numbers. Mine started with long division in the 5th grade!
Arrhenophobia:
fear of men.
Arsonphobia:
fear of fire.
Ashenophobia:
fear of fainting or weakness.
Astraphobia:
fear of thunderstorms.
Interestingly, people with this phobia seem to take great delight in
watching the weather channel, or local News stations give constant and
sensational coverage of storms. If you feed the fear, it grows bigger!
"Astraphobia" is derived from the Greek "aster" meaning star . Related
term: Brontophobia, which is the fear of thunder.
Astrophobia:
fear of stars and celestial space.
Asymmetriphobia:
fear of asymmetrical things. Pablo Picasso definitely did not have this
phobia!
Ataxiophobia:
fear of ataxia (muscular incoordination)
Ataxophobia:
fear of disorder or untidiness. Don't confuse this one with Taxophobia,
which is the fear of taxes. InternalRevenueServiceaphobia?
IRSaphobia?
Atelophobia:
fear of imperfection.
Atephobia: fear
of ruin or ruins.
Athazagoraphobia:
fear of being forgotten or ignored or forgetting.
Atomosophobia:
fear of atomic explosions.
Atychiphobia:
fear of failure.
Aulophobia:
fear of flutes.
Aurophobia:
fear of gold.
Auroraphobia:
fear of Northern Lights.
Autodysomophobia:
Fear that one has a vile odor.
Automatonophobia:
fear of ventriloquist's dummies, animatronic creatures, wax statues-anything
that falsely represents a sentient being.
Automysophobia:
fear of being dirty.
Autophobia:
fear of loneliness,
of being alone. A fear of solitude. Sufferers may worry about being
ignored and unloved, or they may worry about intruders, strange noises
or the possibility of developing a medical problem. Autophobia also
can mean fear of oneself. The word "autophobia" is derived from the
Greek word "autos," which means self.
Aviatophobia
(Aviophobia) - see aerophobia.
If
you or somone you know suffers from phobias, the Freedom From Phobias
program can help - guaranteed! Click Here!
Phobias
List A - Z Index
Phobia
List
"B" Phobias
Bacillophobia:
fear of bacteria.
See below.
Bacteriaphobia:
fear of germs.
Sufferers from bacteriaphobia experience undue anxiety even though they
realize that most germs do not cause diseases. Some people with this
phobia may also have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and to avoid
germs, they may repeat cleaning rituals, such as washing their hands
or face, avoid touching other people or themselves, or even various
objects. "Bacteriaphobia" is derived from the Greek "bacterion" meaning
staff. The Greek word for "staff" was chosen because some bacteria are
rod-shaped, like a staff. Alternate spelling: Bacteriophobia. Alternate
name: Bacillophobia.
Bacteriophobia:
fear of bacteria.
Ballistophobia:
fear of missiles or bullets.
Bolshephobia:
fear of Bolsheviks.
Barophobia:
fear of gravity.
Basophobia:
fear of walking or falling. Also listed as Basiphobia.
Bathmophobia:
fear of stairs or steep slopes.
Bathophobia:
fear of depths.
The feared object may be a long, dark hallway, a well or a deep pool
or lake. "Bathophobia" is derived from the Greek "bathos" meaning depth.
Batophobia:
fear of heights or being close to high buildings.
Batrachophobia:
fear of amphibians, such as frogs, newts, salamanders, etc.
Belonephobia:
fear of pins and needles. (Aichmophobia)
Bibliophobia:
fear of books.
Blennophobia:
fear of slime.
Bogyphobia:
fear of bogeys or the bogeyman.
Botanophobia:
fear of plants.
Bromidrosiphobia
or Bromidrophobia: fear of body smells.
Brontophobia:
fear of thunder.
"Brontophobia" is derived from the Greek "bronte" which means thunder.
This one is on the Phobia List of Top 10 most popular phobias. A related
term: Astraphobia, fear of thunderstorms.
Bufonophobia:
fear of toads.
If
you or somone you know suffers from phobias, the Freedom From Phobias
program can help - guaranteed! Click Here!
Phobias
List A - Z Index
Phobia
List
"C" Phobias
Cacophobia:
fear of ugliness.
Cainophobia
or Cainotophobia: fear of newness, novelty.
Caligynephobia:
fear of beautiful women.
Carcinophobia:
fear of cancer.
Carcinophobia is on the Phobia List of Top 10 most popular phobias.
People with this phobia worry that they may develop cancer or obsess
over anything that happens with their body, believing that it may be
a sign of cancer. From the Greek "karkinos" which means cancer.
Cardiophobia:
fear of the heart.
Carnophobia:
fear of meat.
Catagelophobia:
fear of being ridiculed.
Catapedaphobia:
fear of jumping from high and low places.
Cathisophobia:
fear of sitting.
Catoptrophobia:
fear of mirrors.
Cenophobia:
fear of new things or ideas. This phobia is also listed as Centophobia.
Ceraunophobia
or Keraunophobia: fear of thunder and lightning.(Astraphobia, Astrapophobia)
Chaetophobia:
fear of hair.
Cheimaphobia
or Cheimatophobia: fear of cold.(Frigophobia, Psychophobia)
Chemophobia:
fear of chemicals or working with chemicals.
Cherophobia:
fear of gaiety.
Chionophobia:
fear of snow.
Chiraptophobia:
fear of being touched.
Chirophobia:
fear of hands.
Cholerophobia:
fear of anger or the fear of cholera.
Chorophobia:
fear of dancing.
Chrematophobia:
fear of money.
Sufferers worry that they might mismanage money or that money might
really be "the root of all evil." Actually, that's quite a common misunderstanding.
The actual quote says the "love of money is the root of all evil."
From the Greek "chrimata" which means money. A related term
is chromatophobia, which may be related to he Greek word "chroma" (color)
because of the brilliant colors of ancient coins--for example, gold,
silver, bronze and copper.
Chromophobia
or Chromatophobia: fear of colors.
Chronophobia:
fear of time.
Chronomentrophobia:
fear of clocks.
Cibophobia:
fear of food.(Sitophobia, Sitiophobia)
Claustrophobia:
fear of closed
spaces, of being closed in or being shut in, as in elevators, tunnels,
or any other confined space. Even sitting in one of the middle seats
in a theatre may cause anxiety. This one is on the Phobia List of Top
10 most popular phobias. The word "claustrophobia" is derrived from
the Latin "claudere," which means to shut.
Cleithrophobia
or Cleisiophobia: fear of being locked in an enclosed place.
Cleptophobia:
fear of stealing.
Climacophobia:
fear of stairs, climbing, or of falling downstairs.
Clinophobia:
fear of going
to bed. Sufferers worry about having nightmares or wetting the bed,
and often remain awake and develop insomnia. Insomnia then can become
a real threat to their well-being. "Clinophobia" is derived from the
Greek "klinein" which means to bend, slope or incline, such as while
sleeping.
Clithrophobia
or Cleithrophobia: fear of being enclosed.
Cnidophobia:
fear of stings.
Cometophobia:
fear of comets.
Coimetrophobia:
fear of cemeteries.
Coitophobia:
fear of sexual
intercourse. Among the symptoms of coitophobia are failure to achieve
an erection (erectile dysfunction) and failure to achieve orgasm (anorgasmy).
"Coitophobia" is derived from the Latin "coitus," which means "to
come together."
Contreltophobia:
fear of sexual abuse.
Coprastasophobia:
fear of constipation.
Coprophobia:
fear of feces.
Sufferers go out of their way to avoid coming into contact with feces
or sometimes even seeing feces. "Coprophobia" is derived from the Greek
"kopros," meaning dung. Alternate names: Koprophobia, scatophobia.
Coulrophobia:
fear of clowns.
Counterphobia:
Other sites define this as being "The preference by a phobic for
fearful situations." In my opinion this is not an accurate description.
"Counter" is derrived from the Middle English "countren,"
from Anglo-French "cuntre," which means against, , and ultimately
from the Latin "contra," which means or opposite. So this
phobia should be defined as the fear of opposites. Someone who likes
fearful situations would be better described as a phobophile.
Cremnophobia:
fear of precipices.
Cryophobia:
fear of cold,
including cold weather and cold objects. "Cryophobia" is derived from
the Greek "kryos," which means cold or frigid. A related term is Thermophobia,
fear of heat.
Cryptophobia:
fear of things that are hidden. You definitely won't find people with
this phobia watching "Tales of the Crypt" or writing in code.
"Secret Agent" would not be a good job choice.
Crystallophobia:
fear of crystals or glass.
Cyberphobia:
fear of computers or working on a computer.
Cyclophobia:
fear of bicycles.
Cymophobia or
Kymophobia: fear of waves or wave like motions.
Cynophobia:
fear of dogs.
To avoid dogs sufferers may barricade yards or refuse to travel except
in an enclosed vehicle. "Cynophobia" is derived from the Greek "kyon"
which means dog.
Cypridophobia:
fear of prostitutes or venereal disease. Also listed
as Cypriphobia, Cyprianophobia, Cyprinophobia.
If
you or somone you know suffers from phobias, the Freedom From Phobias
program can help - guaranteed! Click Here!
Phobias
List A - Z Index
Phobia
List
"D" Phobias
Decidophobia:
fear of making decisions.
Defecaloesiophobia:
fear of painful bowels movements.
Deipnophobia:
fear of dining or dinner conversations.
Dementophobia:
fear of insanity.
Demonophobia:
fear of evil
supernatural beings in persons who believe such beings exist and roam
freely to cause harm. Sufferers become anxious when discussing demons,
when venturing alone into woods or a dark house, or when watching films
about demonic possession or exorcism. "Demonophobia" is derived from
the Greek "daimon," meaning deity or evil spirit.
Demophobia:
fear of crowds. The greek word "demo" means "people.
This phobia is more commonly called Agoraphobia.
Dendrophobia:
fear of trees.
Dentophobia:
fear of dentists.
Don't confuse this with the neoautodentaphobia which is the fear
of getting a dent in your new car. This phobia can be serious because
sufferers will often avoid needed medical treatment. Derrived from the
Latin word "denti" which means tooth.
Dermatophobia:
fear of skin lesions.
Dermatosiophobia
or Dermatophobia or Dermatopathophobia: fear of skin disease.
Dextrophobia:
fear of objects at the right side of the body.
Diabetophobia:
fear of diabetes.
Diarrheaphobia: fear of getting diarrhea, usually accompanied
with the fear of not being able to get to a bathroom in time, and of
making a mess. This one falls under the category of a social phobia.
From the Greek word "diarrein," which means "to flow
through."
Didaskaleinophobia:
fear of going to school.
Dikephobia:
fear of justice.
Dinophobia:
fear of dizziness or whirlpools.
Diplophobia:
fear of double vision.
Dipsophobia:
fear of drinking
alcohol. Sufferers of dipsophobia experience undue anxiety about addiction
to alcohol and the effect this addiction can have on their body. "Dipsophobia"
is derived from the Greek "dipsa," meaning thirst.
Dishabiliophobia:
fear of undressing in front of someone.
Dogmaphobia:
fear of beliefs or
opinions. Don't confuse this one with fear of dogs which is Cynophobia.
Domatophobia:
fear of houses or being in a house.(Eicophobia, Oikophobia)
Doraphobia:
fear of fur.
Sufferers of this fear avoid fur-bearing animals such as dogs, cats,
foxes, beavers and rabbits because fur is repulsive to them. This fear
is not always unfounded, for many furry animals can be carriers of rabies.
The word "doraphobia" is from the Greek root "dora," meaning hide or
skin.
Doxophobia:
fear of expressing opinions or of receiving praise.
Dromophobia:
fear of crossing streets.
Dutchphobia:
fear of the Dutch.
Dysmorphophobia:
Excessive dislike of a part of ones body. Also known as "bigorexia"
when characterized by a person's obsession with an imagined defect in
physical appearance. The word "Dysmorphophobia" is from the Greek "dys"
plus "morphe," meaning "form."
Dystychiphobia:
fear of accidents.
If
you or somone you know suffers from phobias, the Freedom From Phobias
program can help - guaranteed! Click Here!
Phobias
List A - Z Index
Phobia
List
"E" Phobias
Ecclesiophobia:
fear of church.
Ecophobia: fear
of home.
Eicophobia:
fear of home surroundings. Also on some lists as domatophobia and oikophobia.
Eisoptrophobia:
fear of mirrors,
or of seeing oneself in a mirror. Because this fear often is grounded
in superstitions, sufferers may worry that breaking a mirror will bring
bad luck or that looking into a mirror will put them in contact with
a supernatural world inside the glass. "Eisoptrophobia" comes from the
Greek "eis," which means into, and "optikos," which means vision, image,
or sight.
Electrophobia:
fear of electricity.
Eleutherophobia:
fear of freedom.
Elurophobia:
fear of cats. Also on soe lists as ailurophobia.
Emetophobia:
fear of vomiting.
Sufferers are especially worried about vomiting in public and embarrassing
themselves. Consequently, they often avoid office meetings, banquets,
dances and other social gatherings. The anxiety produced by this phobia
can cause a nervous stomach and nausea. This one is on the Phobia List
of Top 10 most popular phobias. "Emetophobia" is derived from the Greek
word "emetos" which means vomiting.
Enetophobia:
fear of pins.
Enochlophobia:
fear of crowds.
Enosiophobia:
fear of having committed an unpardonable sin or of criticism. Also listed
as Enissophobia.
Entomophobia:
fear of insects.
To avoid insects, sufferers may frequently clean rooms and carpets,
sweep hallways, spray insect-killer or seal off doors and windows. Entophobia
(insect phobia) includes acarophobia (mites: scabies) and arachnophobia
(fear of spiders). "Entomophobia" is derived from the Greek "entomos"
which means insect.
Eosophobia:
fear of dawn or daylight.
Ephebiphobia:
fear of teenagers.
Epistaxiophobia:
fear of nosebleeds.
Epistemophobia:
fear of knowledge.
Equinophobia:
fear of horses.
Sufferers of equinophobia experience undue anxiety even when a horse
is known to be gentle and well trained. They usually avoid horses entirely
rather than risk being kicked, bitten or thrown. They may also fear
other hoofed animals such as ponies, donkeys and mules. "Equinophobia"
is derived from the Latin "equus" which means horse. An alternate name
for equinophobia is "hippophobia," derived from the Greek "hippos,"
which means horse.
Eremophobia:
fear of being oneself or of lonliness.
Ergalilektriphobia:
fear of power tools or using power tools. From the Greek roots "ergaleio,"
meaning instrument or tool, and "ilektrismos," which means
electricity. A related fear is ErgalilektriTimAllenaPhobia
which is the fear of watching Tim Allen use power tools. My appreciation
to Robert, the Cub Master in Michigan, without whose inquiry this word
would not have been invented. Good luck with the Pinewood Derby!
Ergasiophobia:
a surgeon's fear of operating. If you need an operation, make sure your
surgeon does not have this phobia!
Ergophobia:
fear of work.
This fear may actually be a combination of fears, such fear of failing
at assigned tasks, fear of speaking before groups at work, or fear of
socializing with co-workers. "Ergophobia" is derived from the Greek
"ergon" which means work.
Erotophobia:
fear of sexual love or sexual questions.
Erythrophobia:
fear of blushing.
Anxiety results from worry about being the focus of attention and the
subject of embarrassment. Attempts to suppress blushing often have the
opposite effect. Sufferers of erythrophobia tend to avoid social gatherings
and workplace projects that require them to interact with, or speak
before, groups of co-workers. "Erythrophobia" also can refer to fear
of the color red because of what it may symbolize, such as blood. "Erythrophobia"
is derived from the Greek "erythros" which means red. This one also
shows up on some lists as Ereuthrophobia.
Euphobia: fear
of hearing good news.
Eurotophobia:
fear of female genitalia.
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"F" Phobias
Febriphobia:
fear of fever. Also listed as or fibriphobia and Fibriophobia.
Felinophobia:
fear of cats. Some lists also refer to these phobias as being a fear
of cats: ailurophobia, elurophobia, galeophobia, and gatophobia.
Francophobia:
fear of France or French culture. Also noted as gallophobia and galiophobia
on some lists.
Friendorphobia:
the fear of being asked "Who goes there?" Note: this is a "joke"
phobia, meaning the word was created to be funny, but does not refer
to a "real" phobia.
Frigophobia:
fear of cold or cold things. Also on some lists as cheimaphobia, cheimatophobia,
and psychrophobia.
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"G" Phobias
Galeophobia:
fear of sharks.
People with this phobia can experience intense anxiety if they are on
a boat, visiting an aquarium, on a beach, or watching any of the "Jaws"
movies. My guess is that the original 1975 movie "Jaws" created
a lot of galeophobs and actually caused a decline in the SCUBA diving
industry. More recently, the 2004 movie "Open Water" may have also
contributed. "Galeophobia" is derived from the Greek words "galeos"
meaning a "shark with markings that look like those found on a
weasel." I could be mistaken (I'm not an expert on sharks or weasels)
but I think I've seen more sharks with markings that do not resemble
a weasel. If this wasn't actually in a medical dictionary, I would have
thought it came from a Mony Python skit.
Gatophobia: fear of cats.
Gallophobia: fear France
or of French culture. Gallogarconophobia
is the fear of French waiters. See also Francophobia.
Gametophobia:
fear of being
married. People who suffer from this phobia may fear the difficulties
of living with another person or the responsibility of having a family
or raising children. They may also worry about being inadequate as a
sexual partner. "Gamete" is derived from the Greek word "gamete" meaning
wife and "gamein" which means to marry.
Geliophobia: fear of laughter.
Geniophobia: fear of chins.
Genophobia: fear of sex.
If your parents had this fear, chances are good that you won't (There's
an existential cunundrum in there somewhere.)
Genuphobia: fear of knees.
Gephyrophobia:
fear of crossing
bridges. Their fear can be a combination of claustrophobia (fear of
close spaces) and acrophobia (the fear of heights). Phobic drivers may
worry so much about being in an accident or losing control of their
vehicles that they avoid driving or actually create the very accident
they are trying to avoid. High bridges over waterways and gorges can
be especially intimidating. Very long or narrow bridges can also be
particularly problematic. When I was seven years old we drove to Disney
World in Florida. Although I did not have a phobia of bridges, I do
remember feeling a sense of anxiety while travelling on the bridges
that seemed to go for miles over the Everglades. Fear of bridges is
a relatively common phobia. "Gephyrophobia" comes from the Greek words
"gephyra" which means bridge. Also listed as
Gephysrophobia.
Germanophobia: fear of Germany
or German culture.
Gerascophobia:
fear of growing
old. People with this fear experience anxiety about aging even though
they may be in good health. They may worry about the loss of their looks,
losing independence, inactivity after retirement, impaired mobility,
the onset of disease, confinement in a nursing home, or hair starting
to grow out of weird places on your body. "Gerascophobia" is derived
from the Greek word "geras" which means old age.
Gerontophobia: fear of old
people or of growing old.
Geumaphobia: fear of taste.
Also listed as Geumophobia.
Glossophobia: fear of speaking
in public or of trying to speak. Could also be the fear of language.
The Greek word for language is "glossa."
Gnosiophobia: fear of knowledge.
Graphophobia: fear of writing
or handwriting.
Gymnophobia:
fear of nudity.
People with this pobia worry about seeing others naked or being seen
naked. This is common in middle or high schoolers taking their first
gym class. Their fear may stem from anxiety about sexuality in general,
from a fear that their bodies are physically inferior, or from a fear
that their nakedness leaves their bodies exposed and unprotected. "Gymnophobia"
is derived from the Greek "gymnos" which means naked.
Gynephobia:
fear of women.
"Gynephobia" is derived from the Greek "gyne" which means woman.
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"H" Phobias
Hadephobia: fear of hell.
Hagiophobia: fear of saints
or holy things.
Hamartophobia: fear of sinning.
Haphephobia: fear of being
touched. Also listed as Haptephobia.
Harpaxophobia: fear of being
robbed.
Hedonophobia:
fear of pleasure.
People with this phobia feel guilty about experiencing pleasure even
though there maybe nothing inherently "wrong" with the pleasurable
activity. Their guilt usually arises from the fact that they are participating
a pleasurable activity while others around them or in the world at large
are experiencing nothing but illness, grief, economic hardship and other
painful problems. Their guilt may also arise from the belief that life
is best lived ascetically. "Hedonophobia" is derived from the Greek
"hedone" which means pleasure or delight.
Heliophobia: fear of the
sun.
Hellenologophobia: fear of
Greek terms or complex scientific terminology.
Helminthphobia:
fear of being
infested with parasitic worms called helminths. People with helminthphobia
worry about trichinosis and other helminth diseases even though proper
sanitation and hygeine is practiced. "Helminthphobia" is derived from
the Greek "helmins" which means worm.
Hematophobia:
fear of blood.
People with this very common phobia dread the sight of their own blood,
or blood of another person or animal. Sometimes printed or filmed images
of blood or even thoughts of blood can cause panic. Blood may remind
them of their own vulnerability to injury and of the eventuality of
death. "Hematophobia" is derived from the Greek "haima" which means
blood. Alternate name for hematophobia: hemophobia.
Heresyphobia: fear of challenges
to official doctrine or of radical deviation. Also known as hereiophobia.
Herpetophobia: fear of reptiles
or creepy, crawly things.
Heterophobia: fear of the
opposite sex. Also referred to as sexophobia.
Hierophobia: fear of priests
or sacred things.
Hippophobia:
fear of horses.
See "equinophobia."
Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia:
fear of long words. There is some debate as to whether this is purely
a "joke" phobia or not. Some argue that all of the greek roots
are correct. The punchline is that, of course, it is such a long word.
Hobophobia: fear of bums
or beggars.
Hodophobia: fear of road
travel.
Hormephobia: fear of shock.
Homichlophobia: fear of fog.
Homilophobia: fear of sermons.
Hominophobia: fear of men.
Homophobia: fear of sameness,
monotony or of homosexuality or of becoming homosexual.
Hoplophobia: fear of firearms.
Hydrargyophobia: fear of
mercurial medicines.
Hydrophobia:
1. fear
of water, to drink or to swim in. 2. A term once commonly used
for rabies because in the later stages of that disease, the animal (or
person) has difficulty swallowing and so fears a drink of water. From
the Greek "hydro" which means water.
Hydrophobophobia: fear of
rabies.
Hyelophobia: fear of glass.
Also known as hyalophobia.
Hygrophobia: fear of liquids,
dampness, or moisture.
Hylephobia: fear of materialism
or the fear of epilepsy.
Hylophobia: fear of forests.
Hypengyophobia: fear of responsibility.
Also known as hypegiaphobia. By the way, if those phobias are not spelled
correctly. . . it's not my fault!
Hypnophobia: fear of sleep
or of being hypnotized.
Hypsiphobia: fear of heights.
Acrophobia is the more common word for this phobia.
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"I" Phobias
Iatrophobia: fear of going
to the doctor or of doctors.
Ichthyophobia: fear of fish.
Ideophobia: fear of ideas.
Don't confuse this with Idiophobia
which is the fear of idiots.
Illyngophobia: fear of vertigo
or feeling dizzy when looking down.
Iophobia: fear of poison.
Could also be the fear of Jupiter's first moon (Io).
Insectophobia : fear of insects.
Isolophobia: fear of solitude,
or of being alone. Not to be confused with HanSolophobia
which is the fear of the fictional Star Wars protagonist by the same
name.
Isopterophobia: fear of termites
or insects that eat wood.
Ithyphallophobia: fear of
seeing, thinking about or having an erect penis.
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"J" Phobias
Japanophobia:
fear of Japanese. Judeophobia: fear of Jews. This one was invented so
we could have at least one phobia entry in the "J" category.
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"K" Phobias
Kainolophobia: fear of anything
new, or of novelty. Kainophobia is another term used for this fear.
Kakorrhaphiophobia: fear
of failure or defeat.
Katagelophobia: fear of ridicule.
Kathisophobia: fear of sitting
down.
Kenophobia: fear of voids
or empty spaces.
Keraunophobia: fear of thunder
and lightning. Also referred to as astraphobia, astrapophobia, and Ceraunophobia.
Kinetophobia: fear of movement
or motion. Also referred to as kinesophobia.
Kleptophobia: fear of stealing.
Koinoniphobia: fear of rooms.
Kolpophobia: fear of genitals,
particularly female.
Kopophobia: fear of fatigue.
Koniophobia: fear of dust.
Also known as amathophobia.
Kosmikophobia: fear of cosmic
phenomenon.
Kymophobia: fear of waves.
I think it should be the fear of women named "Kim" who spell
their name with a "y" instead of an "i." Also known
as cymophobia.
Kynophobia: fear of rabies.
Kyphophobia: fear of stooping.
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"L" Phobias
Lachanophobia: fear of vegetables.
Laliophobia: fear of speaking.
Also called lalophobia.
Leitourgophobia:
fear of public servants. "In a mature society, 'civil servant'
is semantically equal to 'civil master.' " - Robert A. Heinlein.
Leprophobia:
fear of leprosy. Known also as lepraphobia.
Leukophobia: fear of the
color white.
Levophobia: fear of things
to the left side of the body.
Ligyrophobia: fear of loud
noises.
Lilapsophobia: fear of tornadoes
and hurricanes.
Limnophobia: fear of lakes.
Linonophobia: fear of string.
Liticaphobia: fear of lawsuits.
Lockiophobia: fear of childbirth.
Not to be confused with Lokiphobia
which is the fear of mischievous god from Norse mythology.
Logizomechanophobia: fear
of computers.
Logophobia: fear of words.
I believe this could also be the fear of the symbol or trademark used
by a company to identify itself. The Greek word "logos" means
word.
Luiphobia: fear of syphillis.
Some people have loopphobia which
is a fear of rollercoasters that have a path of motion that is circular
or curved over on itself.
Luposlipaphobia: (another
joke phobia designed for a chuckle) The fear of being pursued by timber
wolves around a kitchen table while wearing socks on a newly-waxed floor.
This one is based on a "Far Side" cartoon by Gary Larson.
See Anatidaephobia for another one.
Lutraphobia: fear of otters.
Lygophobia: fear of darkness.
Lyssophobia: fear of rabies
or of becoming mad.
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"M" Phobias
Macrophobia: fear of long
waits.
Mageirocophobia: fear of
cooking.
Maieusiophobia: fear of childbirth.
Malaxophobia: fear of love
play. Also known as sarmassophobia. Don't confuse that one with smartassophobia,
which some new teachers are afflicted with.
Maniaphobia: fear of insanity.
Mastigophobia: fear of punishment.
Mechanophobia: fear of machines.
Medomalacuphobia: fear of
losing an erection.
Medorthophobia: fear of an
erect penis.
Megalophobia: fear of large
things.
Melissophobia:
fear of bees.
See "apiphobia." Don't confuse this one with Melissaphobia
which is the fear of girls named Melissa.
Melanophobia: fear of the
color black. Don't confuse this one with melonphobia
which is the fear of fruit having a hard rind and juicy flesh.
Melophobia: fear or hatred
of music.This one is often easily mistaken with mellowphobia
which is the fear of being chilled out.
Meningitophobia: fear of
brain disease.
Menophobia: fear of menstruation.
Merinthophobia: fear of being
bound or tied up.
Metallophobia: fear of metal.
The ore or the music?
Metathesiophobia: fear of
changes.
Meteorophobia: fear of meteors.
Methyphobia: fear of alcohol.
Metrophobia: fear or hatred
of poetry.
Microbiophobia: fear of microbes.
Also known as bacillophobia.
Microphobia: fear of small
things.
Misophobia: fear of being
contaminated with dirt or germs. Also called mysophobia.
Mnemophobia: fear of memories.
Molysmophobia: fear of dirt
or contamination. Also called molysomophobia.
Monophobia: fear of solitude
or being alone.
Monopathophobia: fear of
definite disease.
Motorphobia: fear of automobiles.
Mottephobia:
fear of moths.
It seems like the word originated form the Middle English word "mothe"
but is probably akin the the German word "motte" which means
moth. A related term is "Lepidophobia" which is the fear of
butterflies.
Musophobia: fear of mice.
Referred to also as muriphobia. Keeping with the tradition of using
Greek roots, I suggest: zegeriaphobia
(from the Greek "zegeriai," which means mouse).
Mycophobia: fear or aversion
to mushrooms.
Mycrophobia: fear of small
things.
Myctophobia: fear of darkness.
Myrmecophobia: fear of ants.
Mythophobia: fear of myths
or stories or false statements.
Myxophobia: fear of slime.
Also called blennophobia.
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"N" Phobias
Nebulaphobia: fear of fog.
This would be more accurate if it was the fear of "dust in interstellar
space". Of course, when Latin was invented they didn't know much
about interstellar space, so the word was borrowed from the Latin nebulae
which means mist or cloud. Since the Greek word for cloud is nephele,
or nephos (see nephophobia below), they had to come up with another
root to use for the fear of fog. And, according to Websters, the Old
High German word "nebul" does mean "fog."
Necrophobia: fear of death
or dead things.
Nelophobia: fear of glass.
You might also watch out for girls named "Nell." Just in case.
Neoautodentaphobia:
fear of getting a dent in your new car.
Neopharmaphobia: fear of
new drugs.
Neophobia:
fear of anything
new, of innovation, new situations, places, or things. "Neophobia" comes
from the Greek "neos" meaning new.
Nephophobia: fear of clouds.
Noctiphobia: fear of the
night.
Nomatophobia: fear of names.
Nosocomephobia: fear of hospitals.
Nosophobia: fear of becoming
ill. Also called nosemaphobia.
Nostophobia: fear of returning
home. Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz had Nostophilia.
Novercaphobia: fear of your
step-mother.
Nucleomituphobia: fear of
nuclear weapons.
Nudophobia: fear of nudity.
Showering with your clothes on takes a lot longer.
Numerophobia: fear of numbers.
In school it's called "Math Anxiety."
Nyctophobia:
fear of the
dark. Very common in younger children. From the Greek "nyx" meaning
night. Another term for fear of the dark is scotophobia.
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"O" Phobias
Obesophobia: fear of gaining
weight. Also referred to as pocrescophobia.
Ochlophobia: fear of crowds
or mobs.
Ochophobia: fear of vehicles.
And, if you speak Spanish, it's also the fear of the number Eight.
Octophobia : fear of the
figure 8. Jules Verne's tale "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea"
created Octopusophobia in some people.
Odontophobia: fear of teeth
or dental surgery.
Odynophobia: fear of pain.
Also called algophobia and odynephobia.
Oenophobia: fear of wines.
Oikophobia: fear of home
surroundings, house. Also referred to as domatophobia and eicophobia)
Olfactophobia: fear of smells.
Ombrophobia: fear of rain
or of being rained on. Don't mix this up with Hombrephobia, which if
you speak Spanish, is the fear of man.
Ommetaphobia: fear of eyes.
Alternative word: ommatophobia.
Oneirophobia: fear of dreams.
Oneirogmophobia: fear of
wet dreams.
Onomatophobia: fear of hearing
a certain word or of names. From the Greek word meaning "name-making."
Onomatopoeiabphobia:
fear of words that imitates the sound it represents
Ophidiophobia: fear of snakes.
Sometimes called "snakephobia," but this is not really proper
form.
Ophthalmophobia: fear of
being stared at.
Opiophobia: fear medical
doctors experience of prescribing needed pain medications for patients.
Optophobia: fear of opening
one's eyes. I believe a lot of people are inflicted with this, figuratively
speaking.
Ornithophobia:
fear of
birds. People
with ornithophobia experience anxiety about encountering or being attacked
by birds. "Ornithophobia" is derived from the Greek word "ornithos"
which means bird. I wonder how many people were just fine until they
saw the Alfred Hitchcock's movie "The Birds?"
Orthophobia: fear of property.
Osmophobia: fear of smells
or odors. Also referred to as Osphresiophobia.
Ostraconophobia: fear of
shellfish.
Ouranophobia: fear of heaven.
Also spelled Uranophobia.
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"P" Phobias
Pagophobia: fear of ice or
frost.
Panthophobia: fear of suffering
and disease.
Panophobia: fear of everything.
Also called pantophobia. I would think that would be more like the fear
of pants!
Papaphobia: fear of the Pope.
Papyrophobia: fear of paper.
Paralipophobia: fear of neglecting
duty or responsibility.
Paraphobia: fear of sexual
perversion.
Parasitophobia: fear of parasites.
Paraskavedekatriaphobia:
fear of Friday the 13th.
Parthenophobia: fear of virgins
or young girls.
Pathophobia: fear of disease.
Patroiophobia: fear of heredity.
Parturiphobia: fear of childbirth.
Peccatophobia: fear of sinning
or imaginary crimes.
Pediculophobia: fear of lice.
Pediophobia: fear of dolls.
Pedophobia:
fear of babies
and children. "Pedophobia" comes from the Greek word "pais"
which means child.
Peladophobia: fear of bald
people.
Pellagrophobia: fear of pellagra.
Pellegra is a disease caused deficiency in vitamins (niacin) and lack
of protein.
Peniaphobia: fear of poverty.
Pentheraphobia: fear of mother-in-law.
Also called novercaphobia.
Phagophobia: fear of swallowing
or of eating or of being eaten.
Phalacrophobia: fear of becoming
bald.
Phallophobia: fear of a penis,
especially when erect.
Pharmacophobia: fear of taking
medicine.
Phasmophobia: fear of ghosts.
Phengophobia: fear of daylight
or sunshine.
Philemaphobia: fear of kissing.
Also called philematophobia.
Philophobia: fear of falling
in love or being in love.
Philosophobia: fear of philosophy.
Phobophobia: fear of phobias.
Photoaugliaphobia: fear of
glaring lights.
Phonophobia:
fear of sound.
From the Greek word "phone" which means voice, or sound. Many
children have an apparant fear of loud sounds. Usually it is more of
a sensitivity than a fear, but the symptoms can be similar. Some
lists also suggest that it is the fear of voices (your own or other's);
and fear of telephones. I think there should be a word for fear of telephone
bills!
Photophobia:
fear of light.
This is not a very common phobia. However, the medical community does
use the word to refer to an abnormal sensitivity to or intolerance of
light, which can be very painful. This is not really a phobia, so, in
my opinion, use of this word for light sensitivity is somewhat of a
misnomer. The Greek word "phot" which means light.
Phronemophobia: fear of thinking.
Phthiriophobia: fear of lice.
Also called pediculophobia.
Phthisiophobia: fear of tuberculosis.
Placophobia: fear of tombstones.
Plutophobia: fear of wealth.
Pluviophobia: fear of rain
or of being rained on.
Pneumatiphobia: fear of spirits.
Pnigophobia: fear of choking
of being smothered. Also spelled "pnigerophobia."
Pocrescophobia: fear of gaining
weight. Also referred to as obesophobia.
Pogonophobia: fear of beards.
Poliosophobia: fear of contracting
poliomyelitis (commonly called Polio). MarcoPolophboia
is the fear of the children's game played in a swimming pool (or of
the Venetian explorer).
Politicophobia: fear or abnormal
dislike of politicians. I'm not sure is "abnormal" dislike
of politicians is abnormal!
Polyphobia: fear of many
things.
Poinephobia: fear of punishment.
Ponophobia: fear of overworking
or of pain.
Porphyrophobia: fear of the
color purple.
Potamophobia: fear of rivers
or running water.
Potophobia: fear of alcohol.
Pharmacophobia: fear of drugs.
Proctophobia: fear of rectums.
Prosophobia: fear of progress.
Psellismophobia: fear of
stuttering.
Psychophobia: fear of mind.
Psychrophobia: fear of cold.
Pteromerhanophobia: fear
of flying.
Pteronophobia: fear of being
tickled by feathers.
Pupaphobia : fear of puppets.
Pyrexiophobia: fear of Fever.
Pyrophobia: fear of fire.
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"Q" Phobias
Quadraphobia: fear of the
number four.
Quadriplegiphobia: fear of
quadriplegics or fear of becoming a quadriplegic.
Quintaphobia: fear of the
number five.
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"R" Phobias
Radiophobia: fear of radiation,
x-rays.
Ranidaphobia: fear of frogs.
Rectophobia: fear of rectum
or rectal diseases.
Rhabdophobia: fear of being
severely punished or beaten by a rod, or of being severely criticized.
Also fear of a magic wand.
Rhypophobia: fear of defecation.
Rhytiphobia: fear of getting
wrinkles.
Rupophobia: fear of dirt.
Russophobia: fear of Russians.
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"S" Phobias
Samhainophobia: fear of Halloween.
Sarmassophobia: fear of love
play. Also known as malaxophobia.
Satanophobia: fear of Satan.
Scabiophobia: fear of scabies.
Scatophobia: fear of fecal
matter.
Scelerophibia: fear of bad
men, burglars.
Sciaphobia: fear of shadows.
Also spelled "Sciophobia."
Scoleciphobia: fear of worms.
Scolionophobia: fear of school.
Scopophobia: fear of being
seen or stared at. Also spelled "scoptophobia."
Scotomaphobia: fear of blindness
in visual field.
Scotophobia: fear of darkness.
Also referred to as achluophobia.
Scriptophobia: fear of writing
in public.
Selachophobia: fear of sharks.
Selaphobia: fear of light
flashes.
Selenophobia: fear of the
moon.
Seplophobia: fear of decaying
matter.
Sesquipedalophobia: fear
of long words.
Sexophobia: fear of the opposite
sex. Also called heterophobia.
Siderodromophobia: fear of
trains, railroads or train travel.
Siderophobia: fear of stars.
Sinistrophobia: fear of things
to the left or left-handed. Not to be confused with Sinatraphobia
which is the fear Frank Sinatra or his music.
Sinophobia: fear of Chinese,
Chinese culture.
Sitophobia: fear of food
or eating. This is one of the few phobias that can be life-threatening
if not treated. Also called cibophobia, or sitiophobia.
Snakephobia: fear of snakes.
Also called (more properly) phidiophobia.
Soceraphobia: fear of parents-in-law.
Social Phobia: fear of being
evaluated negatively in social situations.
Sociophobia:
fear of embarrassment
in social situations; can have debilitating effects on personal and
professional relationships. This one is on the Phobia List of Top 10
most popular phobias. Symptoms of social phobia include blushing, sweating,
trembling, rapid heartbeat, muscle tension, nausea or other stomach
discomfort, lightheadedness, and other symptoms of anxiety. People with
this disorder tend to lead difficult and diminished lives. The emotional
toll is great. Many people with social phobia have trouble reaching
their educational and professional goals or even maintaining employment.
In extreme cases, a person may begin to avoid all social situations
and become housebound. "Sociophobia" is derived from the Latin "socius"
which means companion.
Somniphobia: fear of sleep.
Sophophobia: fear of learning.
Soteriophobia : fear of dependence
on others.
Spacephobia: fear of outer
space.
Spectrophobia:
fear of ghosts.
People with this phobia may fear going into woods, empty houses or dark
places and may react with alarm at strange or unexplained noises. Forget
watching "Poltergeist" or other movies in that genre. "Spectrophobia"
is derived from the Latin "spectrum" which means appearance or apparition.
Spermatophobia: fear of germs.
Also spelled "spermophobia."
Spheksophobia: fear of wasps.
Stasibasiphobia: fear of
standing or walking. Also spelled "stasiphobia" and referred
to as ambulophobia.
Staurophobia: fear of crosses
or the crucifix.
Stenophobia: fear of narrow
things or places.
Stygiophobia: fear of hell.
Also spelled stigiophobia.
Suicidaphobia: the fear
of intentionally killing oneself.
Suriphobia: fear of mice.
Symbolophobia: fear of symbolism.
Symmetrophobia: fear of symmetry.
Syngenesophobia: fear of
relatives.
Syphilophobia: fear of syphilis.
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Tachophobia: fear of speed.
Taijin Kyofusho: a phobia
which occurs most typically in Japan, is the fear of offending others
by one’s inappropriate social behavior or appearance. Someone who sufferes
from this phobia is afraid that his social behavior or an imaginary
physical defect might offend or embarrass other people. This is an interesting
contrast to social phobia in western cultures where the afflicted person
is worried embarassment for himself, not about others. An
article on Wikipedia subdivided this one into 4 categories: "Sekimen-kyofu,
the phobia of blushing, "Shubo-kyofu," the phobia of a deformed
body, similar to Body dysmorphic disorder, "Jikoshisen-kyofu,"
the phobia of eye-to-eye contact, and "Jikoshu-kyofu," the
phobia of having foul body odor. Taijin Kyofusho literally means the
disorder (sho) of fear (kyofu) of interpersonal relations (taijin).
Teniophobia: fear of tapeworms.
Also spelled "taeniophobia."
Taphephobia:
fear of being
buried alive. "Taphephobia" comes from the Greek "taphos" meaning grave.
Tapinophobia: fear of being
contagious.
Taurophobia: fear of bulls.
Technophobia: fear of technology.
Teleophobia: fear of definite
plans or fear of religious ceremonies.
Telephonophobia: fear of
telephones.
Teratophobia:
fear of bearing
a malformed child. "Teratophobia" comes from the Greek word "teras"
meaning monster
Testophobia: fear of taking
tests.
Tetanophobia: fear of lockjaw,
tetanus.
Teutophobia: fear of Germans
or German things.
Textophobia: fear of certain
fabrics.
Thaasophobia: fear of sitting.
Thalassophobia: fear of the
sea.
Thanatophobia:
fear of death
or dying. This one is on the Phobia List of Top 10 most popular phobias.
The critically acclaimed HBO Series "Six Feet Under" addressed
this subject matter. From the Greek word "Thanatos" meaning
death. Also commonly referred to as Necrophobia.
Theatrophobia: fear of theatres.
Theologicophobia: fear of
theology.
Theophobia: fear of gods
or religion.
Thermophobia:
fear of heat,
including hot weather and hot objects. To avoid heat, people with this
phobia may live in a cold climate, wear light clothing, stay inside
on warm days, and avoid hot water and hot foods. You will not find these
people living in Texas! "Thermophobia" is derived from the Greek word
"therme" which means heat. The opposite of thermophobia is cryophobia,
fear of the cold.
Tocophobia:
fear of childbirth.
"Tocophobia" comes from the Greek word "tocos" which means
childbirth.
Tomophobia: fear of surgical
operations.
Tonitrophobia: fear of thunder.
Topophobia: fear of certain
places or situations, such as stage fright.
Toxiphobia: fear of poison
or of being accidently poisoned. Alternate terms: toxophobia and toxicophobia
Traumatophobia: fear of injury.
Tremophobia: fear of trembling.
Trichinophobia: fear of trichinosis
(a parasitic disease caused by eating raw or undercooked pork).
Trichophobia: fear of hair.
Also called trichopathophobia, chaetophobia, and hypertrichophobia.
Triskaidekaphobia:
fear of the
number 13. Written reference to this fear dates to the late 1800s. The
term triskaidekaphobia appeared in the early 1900s. "Treiskaideka"
comes from the Greek word for thirteen. Also known as paraskevidekatriaphobia.
Although the purpose of this website is to deal with phobias and not
superstitions, there is a long history of bad vibes around the number
13, going back to the Vikings and ancient Egyptians.
Tropophobia: fear of moving
or making changes. From the Greek "trop," which means turn.
Trypanophobia: fear of injections.
This is another phobia which could result in disease or even death if
it prevents the person from seeking needed medical attention. From the
Greek " trypa" which means hole.
Tuberculophobia: fear of
coming down with the disease tuberculosis or of those who have the disease
already. From the Latin "tubercle," which means "lump."
Tyrannophobia: fear of tyrants.
From the Greek word "tyrannos," which means tyrant.
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Uranophobia:
fear of heaven. Also spelled "ouranophobia." From the Greek
word "ouranos," which means heaven. See the phobia below.
The Greek word for heaven is very close to the Greek word for urine.
Don't get those two mixed up!
Urophobia: fear
of urine or fear of urinating (or not being able to urinate in public
places). From the Greek "ouron" which means urine.
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Vaccinophobia: fear of vaccines
or of vaccination. Have you read the ingredients in vaccines, or how
many of them are made? It would be off-topic to go into details about
that here, but that would do it for me!
Venereophobia: fear of catching
a venereal disease. From the Latin word "venereus" which means
sexual desire.
Venustraphobia: fear of beautiful
women.
Verbophobia: fear of words.
This one uses the Latin root "verbum" which means "word."
Also spelled "verbaphobia." Staying with the pure Greek form,
the more appropriate word for fear of words is "logophobia"
(it's on the list, above.)
Verminophobia: fear of worms,
or the fear of being infected by worms. This one uses the Latin root
"vermis," which means worm. Most phobia lists incorrectly
define this one as the fear of germs. The dictionaries that I found
listed the Greek word for germ as being "mikrobio," or "sperma."
Vespertiliophobia: fear of
bats.
Vestiphobia: fear of clothing
- either your own or of other people's. I wonder if this fear has inspired
some people to become nudists...
Vitricophobia: fear of one's
stepfather. Did you ever notice that in fairy tales it's always the
stepmother who is wicked, evil, or up to no good? Have you ever seen
a fairytale where it's the stepfather? What's up with that?
Virginitiphobia: fear of
virgins.
Virgivitiphobia: fear of
being raped.
Vokephobia: fear of returning
home. This could stem from having an abusive home situation, or due
to living in houses (like the infamous one in Amityville) that may be
haunted by evil spirits or poltergeists which do not take a liking to
having living beings there. This is quite the opposite problem that
severe agoraphobics have, which is the fear of leaving home.
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Walloonphobia:
fear of the Walloons, who are a group of people living in South Belgium,
and although I've never met any of them personally, I'm sure they are
quite nice.
Wiccaphobia:
fear of witches and witchcraft.
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Xanthophobia:
fear of the color yellow or the word yellow. The urbandictionary (dot
com) also has this entry for Xanthophobia:
fear of the fantasy
series known as Xanth, by Piers Anthony, or the sci-fi/fantasy genre
as a whole. "I've never met anyone with such a bad case of xanthophobia.
She never even saw "Lord of The Rings."
Xeniaphobia:
a fear of foreign doctors, usually having to do with strong foreign
accents making it difficult to understand their English. Also, if travelling
in a foreign country, the fear that doctors may have inadequate medical
skills.
Xenodochiophobia:
fear of foreign hotels that could include the fear that there won't
be soap, the kind of toilet paper that you like, clean towels, or good
maid service.
Xenoglossophobia:
fear of foreign languages.
Xenonosocomiophobia:
fear of foreigners who are pick-pockets.
Xenophobia:
fear of strangers
or foreigners. This word is also commonly used to describe a hatred
of foreigners and of strange or foreign things. Derrived from the Greek
word "xenos" which means stranger.
Xerophobia:
fear of dryness or of dry places, such as deserts, where a lack of water
might cause a slow, painful death. The Greek word for dry is"xeros."
Xeroxophobia:
fear of using anything made by Xerox, or fear of office equipment in
general.
Xylophobia:
fear of wooden objects (like xylophones). Also used to describe the
fear of forests. From the Greek "xylo," or "xyla,"
which means wood.
Xyrophobia:
fear of razors. The modern Greek word for razor is "xyrafi."
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"Y" Phobias
I've
never seen a phobia list with any "y" phobias. Apparantly
there are no Greek words that start with the letter "y." So
there aren't any "pure form" phobia names that start with
this letter. Of course we could make up a bunch of phobias for things
that start with "y" that people could have a good phobia for:
yams, yachts, yeild signs, yard sticks, yolk, yule logs, yahoo (the
search engine or the people in general), yaks, yoga, Yellow Pages, youngsters,
and of course the YMCA (the song or the organization).
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Zelophobia:
fear of jealousy. The Greek dictionary I found said that the modern
Greek word for "jealosy" is " ziliaris." So this
one might be more correctly spelled "ziliphobia."
The online Latin Dictionary at the University of Notre Dame listed "zelotypus"
as being the Latin word for jealous, while another English to Latin
dictionary I found listed (what looks to me more like a Latin word)
"invideo," meaning to envy, or be jealous of. This is also
very close to the word "zeal" which, according to Webster's
is from the Greek word "zelos" which means enthusiasm.
Zemmiphobia:
fear of the great mole rat. Someone, somewhere, is having a good, private
chuckle over this one. This is one of those phobias that everybody includes
on their Phobia List because everyone else has it, and there is certainly
a shortage of phobias starting with the letter "z," so why
not?
In researching
this one I found out some interesting things about rats, but the only
Greek roots for rat that I could find were, well. ... all in Greek,
but none of them appeared to start with the letter "z."
The Greek root for mouse is "zegeriai," so that could give
us a new name for the mouse phobia - zegeriaphobia
(the existing ones being "Musophobia" and "Suriphobia."
After striking
out on the linguistic resources, I decided to turn to the field of
science. The Latin genus for rat is "rattus" of which there
are 56 different species. As far a mole rats go I found the plain
"Mole Rat" (Bathyergus, Cryptomys, Heliophobius (African
Mole Rat), Tachyoryctes), the "Naked Mole Rat" (Heterocephalus
glaber), the "Blind Mole Rat" (with 2 genera and 8 species),
the "African Silvery Mole Rat (heliophobius argenteocinereus),
and the "Cape Mole Rat" (Georychus). I also found "Mole
crickets," "Mole shrews," "Water moles,"
and even a "duck mole." But nowhere did I find anything
about the "Great mole rat." If anyone has any clues about
this one, please let me know.
Zeusophobia:
fear of God or gods. Here's another one that someone made up, but did
not put too much thought into it. Zeus is a very specific figure in
Greek mythology. So this phobia should really be the fear of Zeus. In
Greek, there are other roots which refer to god or gods more generally:
ktistes (founder, i.e. God - as author of all things) and theos (a deity,
especially with the supreme Divinity). Theophobia
is already on most lists as the fear of god or religions, but in my
opinion there's a big difference between god and religion. So I recommend
ktistesophobia as the fear of God.
Zoophobia:
fear of animals,
in general, or sometimes used to refer to fear of a specific animal
if there is not a specific phobia word for that particular fear. "Zoo"
is from the Greek word meaning "living being."
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