Millions of Americans suffer from various types of phobias, and Pentheraphobia is one of them. It is no secret that mothers-in-law tend to be difficult to get along with. Thousands of jokes have been made about the poor relationships between a man and his wife's mother, and the trend seems to be equally common between women and their mothers-in-law. However, while an … [Read more...]

Onomatophobia – the fear of hearing certain words or names - combines two Greek words namely, onomatos and phobos. The former means ‘name’ or ‘word’ and the latter means aversion or fear. It is very similar to Onomatopoeia which is a figure of speech wherein the word describing a sound sounds like the word itself (such as boom, buzz, ting-ting, etc). In Onomatophobia, a … [Read more...]

Barophobia is the fear of gravity and the word comes from two Greek words: baros meaning pressure or weight, and phobos meaning deep aversion or fear. A person with Barophobia probably cannot dream of becoming an astronaut. S/he would also refrain from watching movies about space and reading or thinking about gravity in general. A Barophobe would probably hate Sir Isaac … [Read more...]

Coprophobia is the fear of feces or the act of defecation. It leads to fearing one’s own fecal matter, but many phobics may be more afraid of coming in contact with or viewing someone else’s excrement. The word Coprophobia is a combination of two Greek words, namely koprana/copro which is fecal matter and phobos meaning deep aversion or fear. To some extent, tiny … [Read more...]

Astrophobia is an extreme fear of all things pertaining to outer space. It is usually described as the fear or phobia of stars, fear of celestial bodies, or, in general, of outer space. The word Astrophobia is derived from two Greek words: astro meaning stars, and phobos meaning deep aversion or fear. Astrophobia is often confused with Astraphobia, which is the fear of … [Read more...]

Gerontophobia, also known as fear of the elderly or aging, causes an intense fear about the concept of age-related degeneration and elderly people. The word Gerontophobia is a combination of two Greek words: geronto meaning old age and phobos meaning fear or aversion. Gerontophobia is often confused with Gerascophobia which is the fear of getting old. In a sense, the two … [Read more...]

Ithyphallophobia is the fear of an erect penis. The word is a combination of three Greek words ithy, meaning straight, phallo or phallus meaning penis, and phobos meaning deep aversion or fear. Contrary to what most would believe, this phobia can impact both women and men. A person with Ithyphallophobia is afraid of seeing an erect penis, either through clothing or without … [Read more...]

The word Genuphobia, the fear of knees, is derived from Latin genu which means knees and Greek phobos which means fear or deep aversion. A person with Genuphobia is terrified of knees or knee injury. It usually occurs following an injury to one’s own or someone else’s knees, although there could be several other reasons why this somewhat unusual phobia may occur. The … [Read more...]

Agraphobia is often confused with Agoraphobia which is the fear of open or crowded spaces. Agraphobia, on the other hand, is the fear of being sexually abused. This excessive and persistent fear typically affects young children but may well continue into adulthood. It is a complex phobia that may be linked to several other anxiety disorders and sometimes also … [Read more...]

Kenophobia is the fear of empty spaces, empty rooms, or voids. It is the opposite of claustrophobia, wherein the person is afraid of tight spaces such as elevators or crowded rooms, auditoriums or malls. In Kenophobia, the person is terrified of open fields or spaces that he or she generally expects to be filled with mountains or people. The word Kenophobia is derived from … [Read more...]

Pedophobia or Pediaphobia is the excessive fear of children, infants, toddlers, or babies. The word Pediaphobia is derived from paidia meaning children and phobos meaning aversion or fear. The words Pediaphobia and Pediophobia are often mistaken for each other. The former is a fear of babies or children while the latter is a fear of dolls. A person with Pedophobia will … [Read more...]

Pteronophobia is the fear of feathers, feathered objects, or being tickled by feathers. The word Pteronophobia comes from Greek ftero which means feathers and phobos meaning fear or deep aversion. A person with Pteronophobia is afraid of or disgusted by feathers. He or she may not even like feathered pillows or hats with feathers. They may also be afraid of birds or … [Read more...]

Ablutophobia is the excessive fear of bathing, washing or cleaning. People with this fear are afraid of taking a bath or sometimes even touching water. The word Ablutophobia comes from the Latin ablutere meaning ‘washing or cleaning off’ and Greek word phobos meaning deep aversion or fear. Nearly 66% of Americans are known to take a bath every day. In Europe though, … [Read more...]

There are literally hundreds of specific phobias known to man and nearly 6.3 million Americans suffer from some kind of anxiety disorder. One of the lesser known phobias is the fear of eyes, also known as Ommetaphobia or Ommatophobia. The word Ommetaphobia is derived from Greek ‘matia’ meaning eyes and ‘phobos’ meaning fear or deep aversion. A person with Ommetaphobia … [Read more...]

Ephebiphobia is the fear of youth or teenagers and it does not include the fear of younger prepubescent children. The word comes from Greek ephebos meaning youth or adolescence and phobos meaning deep aversion or fear. Another word for Ephebiphobia is Hebephobia. Pedophobia, on the other hand, is the fear of infants or young children but it is often mistaken for … [Read more...]