as in panic
an extremely strong dislike or fear of someone or something
His fear of crowds eventually developed into a phobia.
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Recent Examples of phobia
Also, those with insect phobias should consider this when planning a visit.
—
Jessie Schiewe, Los Angeles Times, 17 Mar. 2026
Despite all these benefits, snakes are among humans’ top phobias.
—Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 15 Mar. 2026
The idea stems from a very specific phobia.
—Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Mar. 2026
The phobia impacts around 25 million Americans.
—Brittney Melton, NPR, 25 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for phobia
Jessie Schiewe, Los Angeles Times, 17 Mar. 2026
Despite all these benefits, snakes are among humans’ top phobias.
—Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 15 Mar. 2026
The idea stems from a very specific phobia.
—Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Mar. 2026
The phobia impacts around 25 million Americans.
—Brittney Melton, NPR, 25 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for phobia
Recent Examples of Synonyms for phobia
Noun
-
During their first night together, just for an instant, Nikki appears to glitch, jerking back mid-kiss and looking at him with blind panic instead of undying affection.—
Alex Barasch,
New Yorker,
11 May 2026
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In other playoff action yesterday, the Thunder are verging on a back-to-back sweep of their own as the Lakers hit panic mode.—
Alex Kirshner,
New York Times,
10 May 2026
Noun
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Eduardo Rodrigues Cavalcante, a receptionist at a hotel adjacent to the school, described scenes of terror, as some students tried to jump over a wall separating the school from the hotel.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
6 May 2026
-
Kellison plays Bennett, a high-energy terror.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
6 May 2026
Noun
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But the following year, as the pandemic wore on and crime rates ticked up, the politics of criminal justice in the city shifted toward law-and-order anxiety, even as new waves of COVID infection struck the jails.—
Molly Fischer,
New Yorker,
11 May 2026
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War rumbles on Putin, who has ruled Russia as president or prime minister since the last day of 1999, faces a wave of anxiety in Moscow about the war in Ukraine, which has killed hundreds of thousands of people, left swathes of Ukraine in ruins, and drained Russia’s $3 trillion economy.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
10 May 2026
Noun
-
Clark also gave fans another injury scare.—
Michael Marot,
Chicago Tribune,
10 May 2026
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Fresh off the heels of an injury scare for Joe Ryan and news of a setback for starter Mick Abel, the Minnesota rotation was dealt another blow Saturday.—
Betsy Helfand,
Twin Cities,
9 May 2026
Noun
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In set-pieces involving the Pooka, dark lighting and strong use of shadow results in some scenes that can give younger viewers a genuine fright.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
1 May 2026
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The 1390 Super Duke RR is leaner and better appointed for handling than the regular Super Duke R, and is sure to give your insurer a proper fright.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Phobia.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/phobia. Accessed 13 May. 2026.
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