aibohphobia
Definitions
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
- noun (noun) An irrational fear of palindromes.
Examples
-
He will list a phobia only if it can be found in a medical reference, which is why many of those submitted -- like the frequently proffered aibohphobia, the fear of palindromes -- fail to make the cut.
-
[Egyptian ruler Ptolemy II] had [Greek writer] Sotades sealed in a leaden chest in 276 B.C. and tossed into the sea because he thought his scribe had tried to pull a fast one, lampooning him with palindromes. . . .Palindromes aren't nearly as dangerous today, Murphy says, but some people fear them -- thus the word aibohphobia, a palindrome meaning the fear of palindromes.
-
I am now advised the longest word in English - spelled the same forward and backward - is not 'redivider,' as often reported, but 'aibohphobia,' which is defined as the fear of words spelled the same forward and backward.
Note
The first half of 'aibohphobia' is 'phobia' spelled in reverse.
