phobo-, phob-, -phobia, -phobias, -phobe, -phobiac, -phobist, -phobic, -phobism, -phobous

(Greek: fear, extreme fear of; morbid, excessive, irrational fear, or terror of something or someone; however, sometimes this Greek element also means a strong dislike, dread, or hatred for something or someone)


For more details about the various phobias, visit this Phobias Introduction page to see Phobia Variations Defined and Explained.

There are only two forces that unite men: fear and self-interest.

—Napoleon Bonparte
caligyniaphobia (s) (noun) (no plural)
An abnormal fear of glamorous women: Thomas acquired caligyniaphobia after having an extremely difficult relationship with a dazzlingly beautiful lady and thereafter felt intensely uncomfortable and nervous when around gorgeous women, mistrusting them completely.
cancerphobia (s) (noun), cancerphobias (pl)
A strong fear of suffering from the disease of malignancy: Cancerphobia more commonly affects anyone who has directly cared for a loved one who has experienced significant pains or disfigurements for an extended period before dying.

Cancerphobia is an anxiety disorder which consists of a chronic angst of developing a tumor that can cause tremendous feelings of sadness, fear, panic, and distress.

In some cases, cancerphobia can be so extreme that it prevents a person from living a normal life and it is considered to be one of the most common types of health-related phobias.

capnophobia (s) (noun), capnophobias (pl)
1. An intense hatred, or fear, of smoking or having anyone around who is polluting the air in the immediate vicinity with tobacco smoke, whether from a cigar, a pipe, or from any similar process of smoke distribution: The guests Mrs. Jones had for dinner knew that she was affected with capnophobia and so they never puffed on any cigarettes while in her house.
2. A fear of smoke exhausts from motor vehicles which are blamed for causing so much pollution in the air: Mr. Straight, afflicted with capnophobia, never had a car because he dreaded the fumes produced by such vehicles and he only went places by train.

Here is a capnophobia link, Part 1 of 4, with images and information for a better understanding of capnophobiacs and why they hate smoking as related to the dangerous practice of smokers.

Also see the pages at this Capnophobia-Fumiphobia, Part 1 for pages about the smoking problems in our global societies.

Smoking is a shocking thing—blowing smoke out of our mouths into other people's mouths, eyes, and noses, and having the same thing done to us.

—Samuel Johnson, lexicographer, (1709-1784)

Believing that we are doing something worthwhile when we are smoking is the first illusion of tobacco.

—Anonymous
capnophobiac (s) (noun), capnophobiacs (pl)
A person who has a dread, or extreme hatred, of smoking: There are many capnophobiacs who despise being near tobacco users and don't allow them in their homes.
carcinomatophobia (s) (noun) (no plural)
A morbid fear of getting or of having cancer: Harry's carcinomatophobia was caused when the doctor told him that the medical diagnosis indicated that he had the ailment.

Cancer causes carcinomatophobia for some people because it is a very harmful growth or malignant tumor in the body which is formed by a change in the normal growth of cells and tending to spread and to destroy the healthy tissues and organs of a person's physical existence.

carcinophobia (s) (noun), carcinophobias (pl)
The irrational fear of being afflicted with cancer: Carcinophobia, also known as cancerophobia, can be one of the most debilitating because the slightest pain or the appearance of new mole or lump on the body is thought to be a guarantee of a tumor or malignancy. Carcinophobia, or the extreme dread of getting a tumorous disease, typically affects those who have had the disease or have known people infected with it and it’s normal to experience such an alarming concern and worry.

People with carcinophobia often take their dread to the extreme and when that terror impacts their everyday life, it becomes a real source for concern because of anxiety about everything associated with malignant growths and the possibility of painful treatments, the loss of hair, the spreading of the disease, and concern that it will be followed by death.

cardiophobia (s) (noun), cardiophobias (pl)
A panic of having a heart disease: A cardiophobia may include any perceived disorder or defect of his or her heart which a person fears will interfere with its normal functioning and which could possibly cause death.
carnophobia (s) (noun), carnophobias (pl)
An excessive aversion toward meat, either raw or cooked: Anyone who has carnophobia does not want to see or eat any kind of animal flesh.
No, get that meat away from me.
NO! Get that meat away from me!
I ordered a vegetable dish, not that lousy animal flesh!

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Part of the secret of success in life is to eat what you like and to let the food fight it out inside.

—Mark Twain
carnophobic (adjective), more carnophobic, most carnophobic
A reference to anyone who hates the mere sight of cooked or raw meat: Jake and his wife Mildred are carnophobic people, convinced that eating of any kind of animal flesh is unhealthy, while dining on various kinds of vegetables is much safer and better for their physical well-being.
catagelophobia, categelophobia (s) (noun) (no plural)
An excessive antipathy of being ridiculed, of being put down, or criticized in a derogatory way: The catagelophobia that a person may have is no doubt based on what others have said previously in a very depreciative, slighting, discreditable, and belittling way.
catapedaphobia (s) (noun), catapedaphobias (pl)
An abnormal fear of jumping from both high and low places: Ted and his child have a catapedaphobia that is related to a terror of heights, a harrow of falling, or apprehensiveness of being severely injured if it were to happen.
cathisophobia (s) (noun), cathisophobias (pl)
An excessive fear of sitting down: Anyone who is suffering with cathisophobia may find it extremely difficult to take a seat, especially in public, because that person may think that he or she is more vulnerable to mistreatment than when standing, and perhaps can run away faster!
catoptrophobia, enoptrophobia (s) (noun) (no plural)
An excessive fright of mirrors that may be based on ancient apprehensions and superstitions about reflections: Sam realized that he had developed catoptrophobia or enoptrophobia and couldn't tolerate having any reflecting surfaces in his home.

The earliest known looking glasses were the quiet waters of pools or ponds. Primitives believed that when they saw their own images in pools, or in any other reflective surfaces, they didn't just see an exact likeness of themselves, but their own souls looking back at them.

In the past, "catoptromancy", or mirror divination, was practiced and so it might have caused people to have catoptrophobia.

A slim girl has a fear of seeing herself in a mirror as being overweight.
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Some people who have catoptrophobia are afraid of looking in mirrors because they may see themselves with physical conditions or appearances that are not realistic.

cenophobia (s) (noun), cenophobias (pl)
An unusual fear of empty rooms or barren spaces: It was quite strange that Janet always avoided areas where there were no buildings, no stores, no parks, no streets, and no furniture in any living quarters, and was therefore diagnosed by her doctor as suffering from cenophobia.
cenotophobia, cainotophobia (s) (noun); cenotophobias, cainotophobias (pl)
A pathological aversion to new things and new ideas: There are those who are affected by cenotophobia because they prefer to continue with their satisfactory living conditions and situations and they don't want anything to change.