Meanings
- uncountableThe fear of mirrors.
I wondered what was at the root of Shingo's catoptrophobia - his irrational dread of mirrors.
1999 June 28, Vctr113062 [username], “[TK3 fanfic] "Phoenix" Ch. 17, 2/3”, in rec.games.video.sony (Usenet)2 more examples
Pundit Bill O'Reilly grapples with "panophobia" (the fear of everything) while, strangely, Rush Limbaugh battles both "catoptrophobia," the fear of mirrors and "Walloonphobia," the fear of the Walloons.
2008 February 6, Gordon (quoting Ed Naha), “We have nothing to fear...but these bozos”, in misc.news.internet.discuss (Usenet)If someone suffers from catoptrophobia (fear of mirrors), he sees mirrors, and their reflections, as dangerous.
2013, Macalester Bell, Hard Feelings: The Moral Psychology of Contempt, Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 72Synonyms: eisoptrophobia, spectrophobia
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe fear of mirrors.
Origin
- Ancient Greekκάτοπτρον“mirror”
- Englishcatoptrophobia
From Ancient Greek κάτοπτρον (kátoptron, “mirror”) + -phobia.
More words from Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
catoptrophobia. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/catoptrophobia
“catoptrophobia.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/catoptrophobia. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “catoptrophobia,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/catoptrophobia.
Source: catoptrophobia on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.