Phobias are fears gone wild, fears that provoke such severe anxiety that they become debilitating, interfering with a person’s ability to live a normal life. The word itself comes from the Greek “phóbos,” meaning fear or panic, and as many as one in 10 American adults (and two in 10 American teenagers) can be spurred into panic attacks by the presence or even the thought of certain objects, situations, or living things. (Speaking of fears, this is why people are scared to drive their cars.)
Some phobias are common. An estimated 12.5% of the nation’s population, for instance, suffers from claustrophobia, the fear of being confined in enclosed spaces. Acrophobia (fear of heights), arachnophobia (fear of spiders), and equinophobia (fear of horses) are also fairly widespread.
But some other phobias seem so strange – so unlikely – that it’s difficult to believe they’re real. Some seem to write their own punchline: What parent hasn’t at one point or another experienced ephebiphobia, the fear of teenagers? And what lexicographical joker decided that the fear of long words should be called hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia?
Some “phobias” are indeed made up with humorous intent. The Oxford English Dictionary cites a reference, in 1824, to a 19th-century clean freak who “laboured under a perpetual dustophobia, and a comical disease it was.” The dictionary also cites “cyclophobia,” said to have been produced by the cycling craze back in 1896, and a 1902 reference to “L.C.C.-phobia [= dread of the London County Council].” (These are some popular slang words nobody uses anymore.)
Jokes aside, some unlikely-sounding phobias are genuine. There apparently really are people who are afraid of ducks (anatidaephobia), of paper (papyrophobia), and of the figure 8 (octophobia), among many other things – and for those afflicted, they’re no laughing matter.
Click here to see a list of the 20 strangest phobias
To assemble a list of 20 of the strangest phobias, 24/7 Tempo reviewed articles on the subject from websites including NHS, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Medical News Today, Healthline, MedicineNet, FearOf, TalkSpace, and Verywell Mind.
Source: NikonShutterman / iStock via Getty Images
Alektorophobia
> Definition: Fear of chickens
[in-text-ad]
Source: Argument / iStock via Getty Images
Anatidaephobia
> Definition: Fear of ducks
24/7 Wall St.
Source: a_Taiga / iStock via Getty Images
Barophobia
> Definition: Fear of gravity
Source: Sagittarius Pro / iStock via Getty Images
Chromophobia
> Definition: Fear of colors
[in-text-ad-2]
Source: ClarkandCompany / E+ via Getty Images
Cibophobia
> Definition: Fear of food
Source: SolStock / E+ via Getty Images
Ephebiphobia
> Definition: Fear of teenagers
[in-text-ad]
Source: miodrag ignjatovic / iStock via Getty Images
Globophobia
> Definition: Fear of balloons
24/7 Wall St.
Source: samdiesel / Getty Images
Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia
> Definition: Fear of long words
Source: phatthanit_r / iStock via Getty Images
Koumpounophobia
> Definition: Fear of buttons
[in-text-ad-2]
Source: proxyminder / E+ via Getty Images
Lepidopterophobia
> Definition: Fear of butterflies
Source: PeopleImages / iStock via Getty Images
Mageirocophobia
> Definition: Fear of cooking
[in-text-ad]
Source: Marina Khromova / iStock via Getty Images
Octophobia
> Definition: Fear of the figure 8
Source: smolaw11 / iStock via Getty Images
Papyrophobia
> Definition: Fear of paper
Source: martin-dm / E+ via Getty Images
Phobophobia
> Definition: Fear of fear
[in-text-ad-2]
Source: ArtMarie / Getty Images
Podophobia
> Definition: Fear of feet
Source: PeopleImages / iStock via Getty Images
Pogonophobia
> Definition: Fear of beards
[in-text-ad]
Source: IrisImages / iStock via Getty Images
Porphyrophobia
> Definition: Fear of the color purple
Source: Onfokus / iStock via Getty Images
Selenophobia
> Definition: Fear of the moon
[in-text-ad-2]
Source: robertcicchetti / iStock via Getty Images
Trypophobia
> Definition: Fear of holes
Sponsored: Find a Qualified Financial Advisor
Finding a qualified financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to 3 fiduciary financial advisors in your area in 5 minutes. Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests. If you’re ready to be matched with local advisors that can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Editors' Picks
