What does hypochondria mean?
Hypochondria denotes an excessive or persistent preoccupation with illness, in which minor physical sensations or ordinary changes in the body are treated as evidence of serious disease. The word commonly conveys persistent worry rather than a single moment of concern, and it often carries a dismissive or pejorative tone when applied to another person. In contemporary medicine, the term is not itself a precise diagnosis; conditions such as illness anxiety disorder or somatic symptom disorder may describe particular patterns more accurately. Its name reflects an older anatomical theory. Greek physicians believed that many illnesses originated in the region beneath the ribs, the hypochondrium, and the term originally referred to this supposed location or to disease arising there. Today, hypochondria is chiefly used for heightened health anxiety, while its literal anatomical sense survives mainly in historical accounts.
nounExcessive or persistent preoccupation with having or developing illness, often accompanied by disproportionate worry about symptoms. In modern usage, the term is usually informal or historical and should not be treated as a precise medical diagnosis.
- Excessive, persistent, or disproportionate concern about illness and physical symptoms.
- Historically, the belief that disease originated in the internal organs located beneath the ribs, especially the liver, spleen, and stomach.
"Her hypochondria led her to seek medical advice for every minor ache."
"Months of hypochondria left him convinced that every headache had a serious cause."
"The word once referred to a supposed bodily region from which many diseases were thought to originate."
The plural is grammatically possible but rarely needed in ordinary use.
"Accounts of the hypochondrias of famous writers reveal common anxieties about illness."
Hypochondria once had a startlingly literal meaning: the belief that many illnesses began in the organs beneath the ribs.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does hypochondria come from?
The word comes through Latin from Greek hypochondrion, a term for the area beneath the ribs or upper abdomen, formed from hypo- and khondros, meaning 'under' and 'cartilage' respectively. Ancient medical writers believed that the organs in this region were the source of many diseases, and the name later came to denote such illness. Its modern sense of excessive concern about one's health developed from that older medical usage.
Related word forms
How hypochondria is actually used
The modern term is often informal or pejorative and may be used imprecisely for ordinary health concern. Its historical medical meaning is obsolete. In contemporary clinical discussion, more specific diagnoses such as illness anxiety disorder or somatic symptom disorder may be preferable when appropriate.
Easily confused with hypochondria
Hypochondria names the condition or preoccupation, whereas a hypochondriac is a person who experiences it.