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phobia
1[ foh-bee-uh ]
noun
- an intense, persistent, irrational fear of a specific object, activity, situation, or person that manifests in physical symptoms such as sweating, trembling, rapid heartbeat, or shortness of breath, and that motivates avoidance behavior.
- an aversion toward, dislike of, or disrespect for a thing, idea, person, or group.
-phobia
2- a combining form meaning “fear,” occurring in loanwords from Greek ( hydrophobia ); on this model, used in the names of anxiety disorders that have the general sense “dread of, aversion toward” that specified by the initial element ( agoraphobia ); on the same model, used in words that name hostility toward a thing or idea, or a specific group, with the sense “antipathy toward or dislike of, disrespect or disdain for” the object or people specified by the initial element ( technophobia ; xenophobia ).
-phobia
1combining form
- indicating an extreme abnormal fear of or aversion to
claustrophobia
acrophobia
phobia
2/ ˈəʊɪə /
noun
- psychiatry an abnormal intense and irrational fear of a given situation, organism, or object
phobia
- An extreme and often unreasonable fear of some object, concept, situation, or person.
Derived Forms
- -phobic, combining_form:in_adjective
51Թ History and Origins
51Թ History and Origins
Origin of phobia1
Origin of phobia2
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Related 51Թs
51Թs That Use -phobia
What does -phobia mean?
The combining form -phobia is used like a suffix meaning “fear.” It is often used in scientific terms, especially in psychology and biology.
The form -phobia comes from Greek óDz, meaning “fear” or “panic.” The Latin translation is timor, “fear,” which is the source of words such as timid and timorous.
What are variants of –phobia?
While -phobia doesn’t have any variants, it is related to two other combining forms: -phobic and -phobe. Want to know more? Check out our 51Թs that Use articles for each form.
Examples of -phobia
An example of a word you may have encountered that features -phobia agoraphobia, “an irrational or disproportionate fear of being in crowds, public places, or open areas.”
The agora- part of the word comes from Greek ǰ́, meaning “assembly” or “marketplace.” And -phobia means “fear,” as we’ve seen. So, agoraphobia literally translates to “fear of the marketplace.”
What are some words that use the combining form –phobia?
What are some other forms that -phobia may be commonly confused with?
Break it down!
The combining form hydro- means “water.” With this in mind, what does the scientific term hydrophobia mean in everyday language?
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