ochlophobia

American  

[ok-luh-foh-bee-uh] / ˌɒk ləˈfoʊ bi ə /

noun

Psychiatry.

1. an irrational or disproportionate fear of crowds, especially an extreme fear that a crowd will become moblike or violent.

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ochlophobia British  

/ ˌɒkləˈfəʊbɪə /

noun

1. psychol the fear of crowds

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Other Word Forms

• ochlophobic adjective
• ochlophobist noun

Etymology

Origin of ochlophobia

First recorded in 1890–95; from Greek óchlo(s) “mob” + -phobia

Explanation

For someone with ochlophobia, or a fear of crowds, a jam-packed concert or shopping mall is more than a simple inconvenience; it's a source of overwhelming panic. Ochlophobia can manifest in several ways: a fear of being trampled; anxiety over the transmission of germs; or the dread of losing one's bearings in a mass of people. For some, it's simply a generalized sense of panic triggered by the thought of entering a congested space. The word is derived from the Greek ochlos, meaning "crowd," paired with the suffix -phobia, meaning "fear."