nyctophobia

[ nik-tuh-foh-bee-uh ]

nounPsychiatry.
  1. an irrational or disproportionate fear of night or nighttime darkness: My nyctophobia is debilitating during the short days and long nights of winter.: Compare scotophobia.

Origin of nyctophobia

1
First recorded in 1890–95; nycto- + -phobia

Other words from nyctophobia

  • nyc·to·pho·bic, adjective, noun

Words Nearby nyctophobia

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

British Dictionary definitions for nyctophobia

nyctophobia

/ (ˌnɪktəʊˈfəʊbɪə) /


noun
  1. psychiatry an abnormal dread of night or darkness

Origin of nyctophobia

1
nyct-, from Greek nukt-, nux night + -phobia

Derived forms of nyctophobia

  • nyctophobic, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012