coulrophobia
noun/kəʊl.ɹəˈfəʊ.bi.ə/
Etymology
Coined in the late 1980s or 1990s, of unknown origin, appearing first, without further explanation, in lists of phobias circulating on the Internet. First use appears c. 1997 according to the OED. According to a widespread theory, the term is based on Ancient Greek κωλοβαθριστής (kōlobathristḗs, “one who goes on stilts”), allegedly chosen for lack of an obvious Ancient Greek equivalent of “clown”, + -phobia (“fear of”). This theory fails to explain the alteration of colo- to coulro-.
- derived from κωλοβαθριστής
Definitions
The fear of clowns.
- […] to develop coulrophobia. On the seventh, clowns from around the world […] congregate at London's Holy Trinity Church for the annual Grimaldi Memorial Service.
- Clowns are no laughing matter to Sean "Puffy" Combs. The swaggering rap royal is widely reported to suffer from coulrophobia, an irrational fear of the red-nosed, versized-shoe-wearing, greasepainted circus buffoons.
The neighborhood
Vish — recursive loop
No curated loop yet for coulrophobia. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA