teratophobia
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
terato- (“pertaining to birth defects”) + -phobia (“fear”), from Ancient Greek τέρας (téras, “monster”).
Noun[edit]
teratophobia (uncountable)
- (rare) An irrational fear of monsters (terrifying creatures, or deformed children).
- For quotations using this term, see Citations:teratophobia.
Usage notes[edit]
- Terato- originated at a time when deformed children were termed "monsters"; this practice is now archaic, but the prefix lives on.
Further reading[edit]
- “teratophobia”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.