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- This article is about the suffix -phobia. For the class of psychological disorders, see Phobia.
The English suffixes -phobia, -phobic, -phobe (of Greek origin: φόβος/φοβία ) occur in technical usage in psychiatry to construct words that describe irrational, disabling fear as a mental disorder, a phobia (e.g., agoraphobia), in biology to describe organisms that dislike certain conditions (e.g., acidophobia), and in medicine to describe hypersensitivity to a stimulus, usually sensory (e.g., photophobia). In common usage they also form words that describe dislike or hatred of a particular thing or subject. The suffix is antonymic to -phil-.
For more information on the psychiatric side, including how psychiatry groups phobias as agoraphobia, social phobia, or simple phobia, see phobia.
The following lists include words ending in -phobia, and include fears that have acquired names.
In some cases a word ending in -phobia may have an antonym with the suffix -phil-, e.g., Germanophobe / Germanophile.
See also the category:Phobias.
Phobia lists
A large number of-phobia lists circulate on the Internet, with words collected from indiscriminate sources, often copying each other. Also, a number of psychiatric websites exist that at the first glance cover a huge number of phobias, but in fact use a standard text to fit any phobia and reuse it for all unusual phobias by merely changing the name.
Psychological conditions
- Acarophobia - fear of mites and by generalization to other small insects.
- Ablutophobia – fear of bathing, washing, or cleaning.
- Acrophobia, Altophobia – fear of heights.
- Agoraphobia, Agoraphobia Without History of Panic Disorder – fear of open spaces
- Agraphobia – fear of sexual abuse.
- Aichmophobia – fear of sharp or pointed objects (as a needle, knife or a pointing finger).
- Algophobia – fear of pain.
- Agyrophobia – fear of crossing roads.
- Amathophobia - Fear of dust.
- Amaxophobia - fear of vehicles, of riding in them.
- Androphobia – fear of men.
- Anemophobia - fear of wind, drafts, moving air
- Anginophobia - fear of suffocation, of being suffocated, or more specifically an attack of angina.
- Anthropophobia – fear of people or being in a company, a form of social phobia.
- Anthophobia – fear of flowers.
- Aquaphobia – fear of water and by generalization swimming.
- Aphephobia - fear of being touched by another person.
- Astraphobia, Astrapophobia, Brontophobia, Keraunophobia – fear of thunder, lightning and storms; especially common in young children.
- Autophobia - fear of being alone with oneself.
- Aviophobia, Aviatophobia – fear of flying.
- Bacillophobia, Bacteriophobia, Microbiophobia – fear of microbes and bacteria.
- Ballistophobia - a fear of missile, or of thrwn objects.
- Basiphobia - a fear of walking, or even standing erect and walking.
- Bathophobia - a fear of depth, and sometimes used in the context of a fear of looking down from a height.
- Belonephobia - a fear of sharp pointed objects.
- Bibliophobia - a fear of books.
- Blood-injection-injury type phobia – a DSM-IV subtype of specific phobias.
- Brontophobia - fear of thunder. Not used for the common mild form found in children.
- Cainotophobia or cenotophobia - a fear of novelty, of new situations, ideas ot things.
- Cardiophobia - a fear of heart problems.
- Catoptrophobia - fear of mirrors or of one's own reflection, or of breaking mirrors.
- Chorophobia - fear of fun, gaity or dancing.
- Cibophobia, Sitophobia – aversion to food, synonymous to Anorexia nervosa.
- Claustrophobia – fear of confined spaces.
- Computerphobia or cyberphobia - fear of computers, of using them.
- Coprophobia - a fear of feces and by generalization dirt, contamination, and filth
- Coulrophobia – fear of clowns (not restricted to evil clowns).
- Cypridophobia - a fear of sexually transmitted disease, or by extension of sexual behavior
- Decidophobia – fear of making decisions.
- Demophobia - fear of crowds.
- Dental phobia, Dentophobia, Odontophobia – fear of dentists and dental procedures
- Dysmorphophobia, or body dysmorphic disorder – a fear of imaginary body defect.
- Emetophobia – fear of vomiting.
- Enissophobia - a fear of criticism.
- Epistemophobia - a fear of knowledge.
- Ergasiophobia, or Ergophobia – fear of work or by extension taking on responsibility, as in a surgeon's fear of operating.
- Eremophobia - a fear of solitude of being alone. See autophobia
- Ergophobia – fear of work or functioning.
- Erotophobia – fear of sexual love or sexual questions.
- Erythrophobia or ereuthrophobia – a fear of red objects and by generalization blushing.
- Febriphobia - a fear of illness due to rising body temperature, or fever.
- Gamophobia - a fear of marriage.
- Gelotophobia - fear of being laughed at.
- Gephyrophobia – fear of bridges.
- Genophobia, Coitophobia – fear of sexual intercourse.
- Gerascophobia – fear of growing old or ageing.
- Gerontophobia – fear of growing old, or a hatred or fear of the elderly.
- Geumaphobia - a fear of tastes
- Glossophobia – fear of speaking in public or of trying to speak.
- Gymnophobia – fear of nudity.
- Gynophobia – fear of women.
- Haptephobia – fear of being touched.
- Heliophobia – fear of sunlight.
- Hemophobia, haemophobia, hematophobia or haematophobia – fear of blood or sight of blood.
- Hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia – fear of the number 666.
- Haphephobia - fear of being touched by another person.
- Heliophobia - fear of the sun or of sunlight.
- Heirophobia - fear of religion, of religious rites or objects.
- Homophobia - fear of men, or more specifically homosexuals
- Hoplophobia – fear of weapons, specifically firearms (Generally a political term but the clinical phobia is also documented).
- Hyalophobia - fear of glass.
- Hydrophobia - fear of water.
- Hydrophobiaphobia - fear of rabies
- Hypertrichophobia - fear of growing body hair, particularly excessive amounts.
- Hypnophobia - fear of falling asleep.
- Iophobia - fear of being poisoned, fear of rusty objects.
- Kainophobia - fear of new experiences, situations etc. See Cenotophobia.
- Kenophobia - fear of empty spaces
- Keraunophobia - fear of lightening and by association thunder.
- Kopophobia - fear of becoming fatigued or exhausted
- Lalophobia - In the general sense a fear of speaking, more specifically a fear of stammering or making errors while speaking.
- Levophobia - a fear of things on the left hand side of the body.
- Ligyrophobia – fear of loud noises.
- Lipophobia – fear/avoidance of fats in food.
- Macrophobia - a fear of large objects.
- Microphobia - a fear of small objects.
- Medication phobia - fear of medications.
- Megalophobia - fear of large/oversized objects.
- Monophobia - fear of being alone.
- Mysophobia – fear of germs, contamination or dirt.
- Necrophobia – fear of death, the dead, particularly human corpses.
- Neophobia, Cainophobia, Cainotophobia, Cenophobia, Centophobia, Kainolophobia, Kainophobia – fear of newness, novelty. see dietary neophobia
- Nomophobia – fear of being out of mobile phone contact.
- Nosophobia – fear of illness or of contracting a particular disease.
- Nosocomephobia - fear of hospitals.
- Nyctophobia, Achluophobia, Lygophobia, Scotophobia – fear of darkness.
- Ochlophobia - fear of crowds and/or crowded places.
- Odontophobia - fear of teeth, or of dental surgery
- Ombrophobia - fear of rainstorms
- Onomatophobia - fear of a particular word or name
- Osmophobia, Olfactophobia – fear of smells.
- Panophobia or panphobia or pantophobia - a fear of everything
- Panphobia – fear of everything or constantly afraid without knowing what is causing it.
- Paraskavedekatriaphobia, Paraskevidekatriaphobia, Friggatriskaidekaphobia – fear of Friday the 13th.
- Parturiphobia - fear of childbirth.
- Peccatophobia - a fear of committing sin.
- Phasmophobia - fear of ghosts, spectres or phantasms.
- Phagophobia – fear of swallowing.
- Pharmacophobia – same as medication phobia
- Phobophobia – fear of fear itself or of developing a phobia.
- Phonophobia – fear of loud sounds, or a fear of ones own voice.
- Ponophobia - a fear of pain or of being worked to hard
- Pyrophobia – fear of fire.
- Radiophobia – fear of radioactivity or X-rays.
- Rhypophobia - fear of defecation or of the product feces. See Coprophobia
- Sociophobia – fear of people or social situations
- Scopophobia – fear of being seen, looked at or stared at by others.
- Scotophobia - fear of the dark
- Somniphobia – fear of sleep.
- Spectrophobia – fear of mirrors and one's own reflections.
- Stasibasiphobia - fear of standing erect and walking.
- Stasiphobia - fear of walking.
- Symbolophobia - a fear of smybols
- Taphophobia – fear of the grave, or fear of being placed in a grave while still alive.
- Technophobia – fear of technology (see also Luddite).
- Telephone phobia, fear or reluctance of making or taking phone calls.
- Tetraphobia – fear of the number 4.
- Thalassophobia - fear of the sea.
- Thanatophobia - fear of death, particularly human corpses.
- Theophobia - fear of God, fear of retribution for sins.
- Tokophobia – fear of childbirth.
- Tomophobia – fear or anxiety of surgeries/surgical operations.
- Toxophobia - fear of poisons, or of being poisoned.
- Traumatophobia – a synonym for injury phobia, a fear of having an injury
- Tremophobia - fear of trembling
- Trichophobia - fear of hair
- Triskaidekaphobia, Terdekaphobia – fear of the number 13.
- Trypanophobia, Belonephobia, Enetophobia – fear of needles or injections.
- Workplace phobia – fear of the work place.
- Xenoglossophobia - fear of foreign languages, or of having to learn them.
- Xenophobia – fear of strangers, foreigners, or aliens.
Animal phobias
An Animal phobia is a fear of certain animals, a category of specific phobias. While Zoophobia is generic term for animal phobias.
- Ailurophobia or gatophobia – fear/dislike of cats.
- Apiphobia – fear/dislike of bees (also known as Melissophobia).
- Arachnophobia – fear/dislike of spiders.
- Chiroptophobia – fear/dislike of bats.
- Cynophobia – fear/dislike of dogs.
- Entomophobia – fear/dislike of insects.
- Equinophobia – fear/dislike of horses (also known as Hippophobia).
- Herpetophobia - fear/dislike of reptiles.
- Ichthyophobia – fear/dislike of fish.
- Musophobia – fear/dislike of mice and/or rats.
- Ophidiophobia – fear/dislike of snakes.
- Ornithophobia – fear/dislike of birds.
- Scoleciphobia – fear of worms.
- Selachophobia - fear/dislike of sharks.
Non-psychological conditions
- Hydrophobia – fear of water (a symptom of rabies).
- Photophobia – hypersensitivity to light causing aversion to light
- Phonophobia – hypersensitivity to sound causing aversion to sounds.
- Osmophobia – hypersensitivity to smells causing aversion to odors.
Biology
Biologists use a number of -phobia/-phobic terms to describe predispositions by plants and animals against certain conditions. For antonyms, see here.
- Heliophobia/Heliophobic – aversion to sunlight.
- Ombrophobia – avoidance of rain
- Photophobia (biology) a negative phototaxis or phototropism response, or a tendency to stay out of the light
- Thermophobia – aversion to heat.
Prejudices and discrimination
- See also: List of anti-ethnic terms
The suffix -phobia is used to coin terms that denote a particular anti-ethnic or anti-demographic sentiment, such as Europhobia, Francophobia, Hispanophobia, and Indophobia. Often a synonym with the prefix "anti-" already exists (e.g., Polonophobia vs. anti-Polonism). Anti-religious sentiments are expressed in terms such as Christianophobia and Islamophobia.
Other prejudices include:
- Biphobia – dislike of bisexuals.
- Chemophobia – prejudice against artificial substances in favour of 'natural' substances.
- Ephebiphobia – fear/dislike of youth.
- Gerontophobia, Gerascophobia – fear of growing old or a hatred of the elderly.
- Heterophobia – fear/dislike of heterosexuals.
- Homophobia – aversion to homosexuality or fear of homosexuals.
- Hoplophobia – aversion to firearms or firearms owners. This word has also gained a certain political notoriety as a dysphemism for "gun control advocate".
- Judeophobia – fear/dislike of Jews.
- Lesbophobia – fear/dislike of lesbian women.
- Pedophobia, Pediophobia – fear/dislike of children.
- Psychophobia – fear/dislike of mentally ill.
- Transphobia – fear or dislike of transgender or transsexual people.
- Xenophobia – fear or dislike of foreigners.
see also
References
- Chris Aldrich (2002-12-02). The Aldrich Dictionary of Phobias and Other Word Families, Trafford Publishing.
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