coulrophobia
noun
coul·ro·pho·bia
ˌkül-rə-ˈfō-bē-ə
ˌkäl-
: abnormal fear of clowns
The term for fear of clowns—coulrophobia—is of fairly recent invention, coined, perhaps, as enough grownups found they were not alone in lingering childhood queasiness over exposure to big people dressed like Bozo.—Richard Dodds
Brian Belden, a child psychologist at Children's Mercy, said there is such a thing as irrational fear of clowns (the clinical term is coulrophobia) that afflicts children and adults.—Robert Trussell
coulrophobe
ˈkül-rə-ˌfōb
noun
ˈkäl-
or coulrophobic
ˌkül-rə-ˈfō-bik
ˌkäl-
plural coulrophobes or coulrophobics
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the man who created one of the most frightening evil clowns in literary history has admitted to being a bit of a coulrophobe himself.
—Rebecca Hawkes
More than 70 coulrophobics and parents complained about posters and bus ads featuring the head of a scruffy, smiling clown doll with the tagline "They know what scares you".
—Dugald Baird
coulrophobic
adjective
Want to ruin your coulrophobic friend's day? Schedule a donut delivery from a scary clown driving an ambulance called the "emergency donut vehicle."
—Matthew Schniper
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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