What does hydrophobia mean?
Hydrophobia is an intense fear of water. It may appear as a specific phobia, in which the prospect of drinking, bathing, swimming, or being near water causes extreme anxiety, although the person's underlying reason for the fear can vary. The term also has an important historical medical association: hydrophobia was used for the apparent fear of water seen in patients and animals with rabies, because rabid animals may struggle or recoil when offered water. In that older sense, hydrophobia is a symptom or description of rabies, not another name for the disease itself. Today, the word is most often used for an extreme fear of water, while aquaphobia is a common alternative. The distinction matters in medical and historical contexts, where hydrophobia can specifically describe the characteristic symptom associated with rabies.
nounAn intense or irrational fear of water. In older medical usage, it also referred to the apparent fear of water associated with rabies.
- An intense or irrational fear of water.
- Historically, the apparent fear of water associated with rabies.
"The patient's hydrophobia made it impossible for her to take a shower during her stay in hospital."
"He developed a sudden hydrophobia after nearly drowning as a child."
"The doctor explained that hydrophobia was one of the signs that the patient had contracted rabies."
The plural is rarely needed because the word commonly refers to a condition or phobia.
"The case histories describe hydrophobias that developed after severe attacks."
Hydrophobia was once a medical name for rabies because rabid animals may appear unable to drink, turning a symptom of the disease into its most memorable image.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does hydrophobia come from?
The word comes from Greek hydor, meaning “water,” and phobos, meaning “fear.” It entered English in the early nineteenth century as a medical term associated with rabies and its apparent aversion to water. Later, the word was also used more generally for an intense fear of water, and it remains a synonym of aquaphobia.
How hydrophobia is actually used
In modern general use, hydrophobia usually means an intense fear of water and is broadly synonymous with aquaphobia. The older medical sense is chiefly encountered in descriptions of rabies, especially rabies in animals.
Easily confused with hydrophobia
Hydrophobia and aquaphobia both denote fear of water, but hydrophobia is the more established general term and also has a historical medical use for the symptom associated with rabies.
Rabies is the viral disease that can cause hydrophobia, while hydrophobia names the fear of water rather than the infection itself.