Saturday, October 3, 2015

Word of the Day

astraphobia
\as-truh-FOH-bee-uh\

noun
1. Psychiatry. an abnormal fear of thunder and lightning.

Quotes
Julie was an anxious child with a number of phobias, not only a fear of thunder and lightning (Astraphobia, murmured Dr. Gibraltar) but also a fear of lightning bugs and any other bioluminescent creatures that might light up anywhere near her…
-- Katharine Weber, True Confections, 2010

Origin
Astraphobia comes to English from the Greek astrapḗ meaning "lightning," and phobos meaning "fear."

Dictionary.com