mindmap
root((PHOB))
acrophobic
Fearful of heights.
🌱She's so acrophobic that, whenever she can't avoid taking the route that includes the high bridge, she asks the police to drive her across. 🌳The Greek akron means "height" or "summit," and the acro- root can be seen in such words as acrobat and Acropolis. Almost everyone has some fear of heights, but an abnormal dread of high places, along with the vertigo （dizziness） that most acrophobes also experience, are common as well; in fact, acrophobia is one of the half-dozen most common recognized phobias. Acrophobia and claustrophobia both play a role in another well-known phobia: the fear of flying, itself often known as aerophobia. agoraphobia A fear of being in embarrassing or inescapable situations, especially in open or public places.
🌱After barely surviving a terrible attack of agoraphobia in the middle of the Sonoran Desert, he finally agree to start seeing a psychologist. 🌳The agora was the marketplace in ancient Greece; thus, agoraphobia often involves fear of public places and crowds. But it also may involve fear of being in shops, or even fear of being in open spaces, or fear of traveling alone. It may also be a fear of experiencing some uncontrollable or embarrassing event （like fainting） in the presence of others with no help available. Agoraphobia can be hard to understand for those who don't suffer from it, especially because it can take so many different forms, but it is often a serious and socially crippling condition. xenophobe One who has a fear or hatred of strangers or foreigners.
🌱A Middle Easterner reading the U.S.'s visa restrictions might feel that the State Department was run by xenophobes. 🌳Xenophobe is partly based on the Greek noun xenos, meaning "stranger, guest, foreigner." Unlike other phobias, xenophobia isn't really considered an abnormal condition; instead, it's generally thought of as just serious narrow-mindedness, the kind of thinking that goes along with racism and extreme patriotism. In times of war, a government will often actually try to turn all its citizens into xenophobes. arachnophobia Having a fear or dislike of spiders.
🌱At 50, my sister still suffers from arachnophobia, and can't sleep in a room unless she knows it has no spiders. 🌳In Greek mythology, Arachne was a weaver of such skill that she dared to challenge the goddess Athena at her craft. When she won their competition by weaving a tapestry disrespectful to the gods, the enraged Athena tore it to shreds, and in despair Arachne hanged herself. Out of pity, Athena loosened the rope, which became a cobweb, and changed Arachne into a spider. Today, the spiders, scorpions, mites, and ticks all belong to the class known as arachnids. Arachnophobia is the most common of the animal phobias; but many people suffer from similar phobias regarding snakes （ophidiophobia）, dogs （cynophobia）, and mice and rats （musophobia）.
🌱She's so acrophobic that, whenever she can't avoid taking the route that includes the high bridge, she asks the police to drive her across. 🌳The Greek akron means "height" or "summit," and the acro- root can be seen in such words as acrobat and Acropolis. Almost everyone has some fear of heights, but an abnormal dread of high places, along with the vertigo （dizziness） that most acrophobes also experience, are common as well; in fact, acrophobia is one of the half-dozen most common recognized phobias. Acrophobia and claustrophobia both play a role in another well-known phobia: the fear of flying, itself often known as aerophobia. agoraphobia A fear of being in embarrassing or inescapable situations, especially in open or public places.
🌱After barely surviving a terrible attack of agoraphobia in the middle of the Sonoran Desert, he finally agree to start seeing a psychologist. 🌳The agora was the marketplace in ancient Greece; thus, agoraphobia often involves fear of public places and crowds. But it also may involve fear of being in shops, or even fear of being in open spaces, or fear of traveling alone. It may also be a fear of experiencing some uncontrollable or embarrassing event （like fainting） in the presence of others with no help available. Agoraphobia can be hard to understand for those who don't suffer from it, especially because it can take so many different forms, but it is often a serious and socially crippling condition. xenophobe One who has a fear or hatred of strangers or foreigners.
🌱A Middle Easterner reading the U.S.'s visa restrictions might feel that the State Department was run by xenophobes. 🌳Xenophobe is partly based on the Greek noun xenos, meaning "stranger, guest, foreigner." Unlike other phobias, xenophobia isn't really considered an abnormal condition; instead, it's generally thought of as just serious narrow-mindedness, the kind of thinking that goes along with racism and extreme patriotism. In times of war, a government will often actually try to turn all its citizens into xenophobes. arachnophobia Having a fear or dislike of spiders.
🌱At 50, my sister still suffers from arachnophobia, and can't sleep in a room unless she knows it has no spiders. 🌳In Greek mythology, Arachne was a weaver of such skill that she dared to challenge the goddess Athena at her craft. When she won their competition by weaving a tapestry disrespectful to the gods, the enraged Athena tore it to shreds, and in despair Arachne hanged herself. Out of pity, Athena loosened the rope, which became a cobweb, and changed Arachne into a spider. Today, the spiders, scorpions, mites, and ticks all belong to the class known as arachnids. Arachnophobia is the most common of the animal phobias; but many people suffer from similar phobias regarding snakes （ophidiophobia）, dogs （cynophobia）, and mice and rats （musophobia）.
PHOB comes from the Greek noun phobos, "fear," and it shows up clearly in our noun phobia, meaning "unusual fear of a specific thing." Phobias vary greatly in seriousness and also in frequency. Most of us have experienced claustrophobia at some time, but few truly suffer from fear of the number 13, a condition known as triskaidekaphobia.🌸