Meaning & use
agoraphobia
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountablemedical
A strong anxiety about being in places or situations, such as crowds, open areas or public transport, where escape or help might be difficult.
Grammar: Uncountable: she suffers from agoraphobia, not an agoraphobia.
Patterns
- suffer from agoraphobia
- agoraphobia about something
Her agoraphobia made it hard to leave the house alone.
He was treated for agoraphobia with gradual exposure therapy.
Agoraphobia can begin after a panic attack in a public place.
Common combinations
- suffer from agoraphobia
- She has suffered from agoraphobia for years.
- treat agoraphobia
- Therapists treat agoraphobia with gradual steps.
- severe agoraphobia
- Severe agoraphobia can keep people at home.
- develop agoraphobia
- He developed agoraphobia after a panic attack.
- overcome agoraphobia
- She slowly overcame her agoraphobia.
Synonyms and how they differ
- fear of open spaces
- This is the everyday explanation, but it is narrower than agoraphobia, which also covers crowds and travel.
- social anxiety
- Social anxiety centers on fear of judgment, whereas agoraphobia centers on fear of being trapped or unable to get help.
Opposites
Word family
- agoraphobic adjective
- suffering from or relating to agoraphobia
- agoraphobe noun
- a person with agoraphobia
- phobia noun
- a lasting extreme fear
Commonly confused: agoraphobia or claustrophobia?
agoraphobia vs claustrophobia
Claustrophobia is fear of small or enclosed spaces. Agoraphobia is fear of places where escape feels hard, such as crowds or open areas.
Practice
A person who dreads leaving home because crowded places feel unsafe may have ___.
Choose one answer.
Agoraphobia is fear of situations such as crowds or open places. Claustrophobia is fear of enclosed spaces, hydrophobia is fear of water and xenophobia is fear of foreigners.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “agoraphobia”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.