gelotophobe

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒɛlətəˌfoʊb/
• Hyphenation: ge‧lo‧to‧phobe

Noun

gelotophobe (plural gelotophobes)

1. A person who experiences gelotophobia, one who fears being laughed at.
   • 2008, Victor Raskin, The primer of humor research:

     Indeed, the 14 countries (with altogether 3526 participants) studied yielded a noticeable number of gelotophobes. […] Studies showed that gelotophobes misperceive auditorily presented laughter of a positive quality, and consider it […]

   • 2010, Gwyneth Daniel, Utmost Extrication: Why Henry Hellyer Shot Himself, page 53:

     Gelotophobes have particular problems understanding facial expressions (Ruch and Proyer, 2008a). A smile may be seen as malevolent, even when no more is intended than a warm, happy, expression of positive emotion, as in teasing.

   • 2011, Ted Gournelos, Viveca Greene, A Decade of Dark Humor, page 222:

     Studies of gelotophobia. It turns out that gelotophobes have difficulty distinguishing between situations in which they are the butts of gentle mockery and those in which […]