This week’s theme
Phobias & Manias

This week’s words
monophobia
sitomania
ailurophobia
pyromania
claustrophobia

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(ai-loor-uh-FOH-bee-uh, ay-)

MEANING:

noun: A fear of cats.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Greek ailuro- (cat) + phobia (fear). Earliest documented use: 1905. The opposite is ailurophilia.

USAGE:

“He didn’t mention that some people are downright scared to death of cats. But that’s OK because most people don’t understand ailurophobia anyway. That’s why we lie and say we’re allergic when we turn down dinner invitations to a cat lover’s home.”
Dahleen Glanton; Chicago’s Rat Problem Gnaws at Feline Fears; Chicago Tribune (Illinois); Nov 2, 2017.

See more usage examples of ailurophobia in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: