A Comprehensive List of Phobias and Obscure Fears

Layne is an active freelance writer. She enjoys staying up-to-date on trends, media, and emerging topics.

A List of Common and Strange Phobias

"Phobia" is an ancient Greek word that translates to an extreme or irrational fear of something. Someone who is fearful of needles, for example, is an aichmophile. When used as an adjective, you might say aichmophobic. The complete opposite of phobia is philia (obsessive).

Different Types of Phobias

Here’s a comprehensive list of phobias, ranging from common phobias like a fear of spiders or needles to rare phobias like a fear of sunlight or mannequins.

A

A fear . . .

• Achluophobia: of the dark
• Acrohobia: of heights
• Aerophobia: of flying
• Algophobia: of pain
• Aichmophobia: of needles
• Androphobia: of men
• Ailurophobia: of cats
• Anthropophobia: of people
• Anuptophobia: of being single
• Apiophobia: of bees
• Arachnophobia: of spiders
• Ataxophobia: of mess
• Atychiphobia: of failure
• Automatonophobia: of mannequins

B

• Baceriophobia: of bacteria
• Barophobia: of gravity
• Bibliophobia: of books
• Botanophobia: of plants
• Brontophobia: of lighting and thunder

C

• Catoptrophobia: of mirrors
• Cenophobia: of new things and ideas
• Chorophobia: of dancing
• Chromophobia: of colors
• Chronophobia: of time
• Claustrophobia: of small spaces

• Cleptophobia: of theft
• Coimetrophobia: of cemeteries
• Coulrophobia: of clowns
• Crystallophobia: of crystal and glass
• Cyberphobia: of computers
• Cyclophobia: of bicycles
• Cynophobia: of dogs

D

• Demophobia: of crowds
• Dentophobia: of dentists
• Dendrophobia: of trees
• Dipsophobia: of drinking

E

• Ecclesiophobia: of church
• Eleutherophobia: of freedom
• Entophobia: of insects
• Epistemophobia: of knowledge
• Equinophobia: of horses

F

• Felinophobia: of cats

G

• Gamophobia: of marriage
• Geliophobia: of laughter
• Genuphobia: of knees
• Glossophobia: of speaking
• Graphophobia: of handwriting
• Gynophobia: of women

H

1. Hadephobia: of hell
2. Hamartophobia: of sin
3. Haphephobia: of touch
4. Heliophobia: of the sun
5. Hemophbobia: of blood
6. Hodophobia: of travel
7. Homichlophobia: of fog
8. Hydrophobia: of water
9. Hylophobia: of forests
10. Hypsiphobia: of height
11. Hypochondria: of illness

I

• Iatrophobia: of doctors
• Ichthyophobia: of fish
• Ideophobia: of ideas
• Isolophobia: of solitude

K

• Kainolophobia: of newness
• Koumpounophobia: of buttons
• Kymophobia: of waves

L

• Lachanophobia: of vegetables
• Lilapsophobia: of tornadoes and hurricanes
• Limnophobia: of lakes
• Lockiophobia: of childbirth
• Lygophobia: of darkness

M

• Mageirocophobia: of cooking
• Mechanophobia: of machines
• Megalophobia: of large things
• Melissophobia: of bees
• Metallophobia: of metal
• Metathesiophobia: of change
• Microphobia: of small things
• Motorphobia: of automobiles
• Mottephobia: of moths

N

• Necrophobia: of death and the dead
• Nephophobia: of clouds
• Nosocomephobia: of hospitals
• Nyctophobia: of the dark

O

• Obesophobia: of weight gain
• Olfactophobia: of smells
• Ombrophobia: of rain
• Ophidiophobia: of snakes
• Ophthalmophobia: of being watched
• Ornithophobia: of birds

P

• Papyrophobia: of paper
• Pediophobia: of dolls
• Phasmophobia: of ghosts
• Philematophobia: of kissing
• Philophobia: of being in love
• Plutophobia: of wealth
• Pluviophobia: of rain
• Podophobia: of feet
• Potamophobia: of rivers and water
• Pyrophobia: of fire

R

• Rhytiphobia: of wrinkles
• Rupophobia: of dirt

S

• Samhainophobia: of Halloween
• Scolionophobia: of school
• Selachophobia: of sharks
• Selenophobia: of the moon
• Sociophobia: of social criticism
• Somniphobia: of sleep
• Stenophobia: of new things

T

• Tachophobia: of speed
• Technophobia: of technology
• Thalassophobia: of the sea
• Theatrophobia: of theaters
• Theologicophobia: of theology
• Tonitrophobia: of thunder
• Typrophobia: of holes

U

• Uranophobia: of heaven

V

• Vestiphobia: of clothing
• Verminophobia: of germs

W

• Wiccophobia: of witches

X

• Xenoglossophobia: of foreign languages
• Xenophobia: of strangers, foreigners

Z

• Zoophobia: of animals

Sources

• Aleksandreia.com
• Alphadictionary.com
• Verywellmind.com

This content is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge and is not meant to substitute for formal and individualized advice from a qualified professional.

© 2020 Laynie H

Comments

Laynie H (author) from Bend, Oregon on December 01, 2020:

Hi Liz, I agree that this information is certainly interesting and worth knowing. Trivia and such.

Laynie H (author) from Bend, Oregon on December 01, 2020:

Hi Lora, I'm glad you found this amusing! It was fun to research. There are some pretty strange ones that I didn't include intentionally on this list . . .

Liz Westwood from UK on November 22, 2020:

I had no idea that there were so many. This would be great revision material for professional quizzers. There is often a question about an obscure phobia.

Lora Hollings on November 22, 2020:

Wow! I think you have covered every phobia imaginable, Layne. I never realized there were so many. I certainly wasn’t aware that there was a fear of being single. Maybe this accounts for many people picking the wrong person to marry? Also a fear of mannequins. I think there is a fear for everything! And perhaps people have different levels of fear for these things. This is a very interesting article. I wonder if we’re born with some of these fears or if they are learned?