PHOBIA

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does phobia mean? 

• PHOBIA (noun)
  The noun PHOBIA has 1 sense:

1. an anxiety disorder characterized by extreme and irrational fear of simple things or social situations

  Familiarity information: PHOBIA used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PHOBIA (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

An anxiety disorder characterized by extreme and irrational fear of simple things or social situations

Classified under:

Nouns denoting stable states of affairs

Synonyms:

phobia; phobic disorder; phobic neurosis

Context example:

phobic disorder is a general term for all phobias

Hypernyms ("phobia" is a kind of...):

anxiety disorder (a cover term for a variety of mental disorders in which severe anxiety is a salient symptom)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "phobia"):

agoraphobia (a morbid fear of open spaces (as fear of being caught alone in some public place))

simple phobia (any phobia (other than agoraphobia) associated with relatively simple well-defined stimuli)

social phobia (any phobia (other than agoraphobia) associated with situations in which you are subject to criticism by others (as fear of eating in public or public speaking etc))

Derivation:

phobic (suffering from irrational fears)

 Context examples 

If you become anxious and extremely self-conscious in everyday social situations, you could have a social phobia.

(Phobias, NIH: National Institute of Mental Health)

It has been used to treat phobias and anxiety, to manage pain, and to extinguish habits and addictions.

(Hypnotherapy, NCI Thesaurus)

Agoraphobia is a type of phobia and a type of anxiety disorder.

(Agoraphobia, NCI Dictionary)

Class of mental disorders milder than psychosis, including hysteria, fugue, obsession, phobia, etc.

(Neurosis, NIH CRISP Thesaurus)

Examples of common phobias include fear of spiders, flying in an airplane, elevators, heights, enclosed rooms, crowded public places, and embarrassing oneself in front of other people.

(Phobia, NCI Dictionary)

Mental disorders include a wide range of problems, including: • Anxiety disorders, including panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and phobias • Bipolar disorder • Depression • Mood disorders • Personality disorders • Psychotic disorders, including schizophrenia

(Mental Disorders, NIH)

People with phobias try to avoid what they are afraid of.

(Phobias, NIH: National Institute of Mental Health)

Phobias usually start in children or teens, and continue into adulthood.

(Phobias, NIH: National Institute of Mental Health)

The causes of specific phobias are known, but they sometimes run in families.

(Phobias, NIH: National Institute of Mental Health)

Treatment helps most people with phobias.

(Phobias, NIH: National Institute of Mental Health)