Meanings
nounarctophile (plural arctophiles)
plural arctophiles
- One who has a fondness for teddy bears, usually a collector of them.First known use 1960s
On the other hand I am appalled by the ways these "arctophiles" seem to feel for their childhood friends not an informed, reminiscent emotion, but exactly what they felt at 6 with no development at all.
1969 October 15, Gillian Tindall, “The bear facts”, in The Guardian (Woman’s Guardian section), London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 7, column 2, “Love letters”
Synonyms & antonyms
Also see
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*h₂ŕ̥tḱos
- Proto-Hellenic*árktos
- Ancient Greekἄρκτος (árktos)
- Proto-Indo-European*bʰil-
- Proto-Indo-European*bʰil-o-s
- Ancient Greekφίλος (phílos)
- Englisharctophile
From Ancient Greek ἄρκτος (árktos) + English -phile.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Dutch arctofiel
- arctofielone who has a fondness for teddy bears
Finnish nallefriikki
- nallefriikkione who has a fondness for teddy bears
French arctophile
- arctophileone who has a fondness for teddy bears
German Arktophiler, Arktophile
- Arktophilerone who has a fondness for teddy bears
- Arktophileone who has a fondness for teddy bears
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
APA
arctophile. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arctophile
MLA
“arctophile.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arctophile. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “arctophile,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/arctophile.
Source: arctophile on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.