entomophobia
Nov. 18th, 2016 08:38 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
prettygoodwordentomophobia (ent-toh-moh-FOH-bee-uh) - n., abnormal fear of insects.
Or of one or more classes of insects -- apiphobia (fear of bees) and myrmecophobia (ants) are types of entomophobia. This is not a condition of the household preschooler, who despite repeated owie encounters with buggies, including two times straying into a fire-ant nest, remains fascinated and attracted by insects and arachnids. From Greek roots, natch -- éntoma, insects, noun use of neuter plural of éntomos, notched, verbid of entémnein, to cut in/up. So ... the Greeks thought of bugs as critters that chew things up? Huh.
---L.
Or of one or more classes of insects -- apiphobia (fear of bees) and myrmecophobia (ants) are types of entomophobia. This is not a condition of the household preschooler, who despite repeated owie encounters with buggies, including two times straying into a fire-ant nest, remains fascinated and attracted by insects and arachnids. From Greek roots, natch -- éntoma, insects, noun use of neuter plural of éntomos, notched, verbid of entémnein, to cut in/up. So ... the Greeks thought of bugs as critters that chew things up? Huh.
---L.
