1.
phobia; pathological fear
An intense, persistent fear of a specific object or situation, strong enough to interfere with daily life. Used as a standalone noun and as a suffix on the feared thing.
かれは高所恐怖症だ。
He has a fear of heights.
閉所恐怖症でエレベーターが苦手だ。
I have claustrophobia, so I'm not good with elevators.
子どものころの経験が原因で、犬に対する恐怖症になった。
Because of a childhood experience, I developed a phobia of dogs.
Most commonly used as a suffix on the feared object or situation (X恐怖症). A medical term that is also used loosely in everyday speech.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 高所恐怖症: fear of heights (acrophobia)
- 閉所恐怖症: claustrophobia
- 対人恐怖症: social phobia
- 先端恐怖症: fear of pointed objects
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 恐怖: fear; terror — the emotion itself, without the sense of a disorder
- トラウマ: trauma — a damaging past experience, which can be a cause of a 恐怖症