Word of the Day Archive
Monday October 31, 2011
nyctophobia \nik-tuh-FOH-bee-uh\
, noun:
An abnormal fear of night or darkness.
Hardly right for him to do that if you're here by yourself, Miss Laetitia—all alone with your nyctophobia—but if Miss Templeton were here as well, you could all chaperone one another.
-- Barbara Cleverly, A Darker God
For as long as she could remember, Jerry Gates had been terrified of the dark. The cause of this nyctophobia was beyond the reach of recollection: some early trauma at the top of the stairs, perhaps.
-- Christopher Fowler, Seventy-Seven Clocks
Nyctophobia stems from the Greek nyktos- meaning night and phobia meaning fear.
Dictionary.com Entry and Pronunciation for nyctophobia
