Hoplophobia: is it really a word?

[vito]

I've seen this word used on this and some other gun forums, and I understand it is supposed to mean an irrational fear of guns. But looking this up on several different dictionary websites, including Dictionary.com and Miriam-Webster.com gets a negative result. Is this really a bona-fide word, and if so, where does it come from? I'd hate to use it in, for example, a letter to the editor of a newspaper only to have the editor be unable to figure out what I am talking about.

 

[gm272gs]

Jeff Cooper made up the word.

Ooh Rah!

 

[arjay]

Colonel Jeff Cooper dreamed it up.

 

[diamonback68]

It was formed by Jeff Cooper the writer.
Firearms authority and writer Jeff Cooper claims to have coined the word in 1962 to describe what he called a "mental aberration consisting of an unreasoning terror of gadgetry, specifically, firearms."http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoplophobia#cite_note-cooper-commentaries-5-7-5The term was constructed from the Greek ὅπλον - hoplon, meaning, amongst other things, "arms,"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoplophobia#cite_note-6 and φόβος - phobos, meaning "fear."http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoplophobia#cite_note-7 Although not a mental health professional, Cooper employed the term as an alternative to other slang terms, stating: "We read of 'gun grabbers' and 'anti-gun nuts' but these slang terms do not [explain this behavior]." Cooper attributed this behavior to an irrational fear of firearms and other forms of weaponry. Cooper's opinion was that "the most common manifestation of hoplophobia is the idea that instruments possess a will of their own, apart from that of their user."

 

[Onomea]

Sure it's a word. It is a neologism. Just because it is not in conventional dictionaries does not mean it is not a word. It is well understood in the gun community.

However, if you have an acquaintance who gets a thrill out of claiming it is not a word because he can't find it in a dictionary, just let him be. We don't care, and you should not either, whether he thinks it is a word or not.

 

[therevjay]

I don't know who made up the term. Posters here say Jeff Cooper, and I have no reason to doubt that.

I 've read Sigmund Freud said those who have a irrational fear of weapons are immature and have low self esteem.

 

[OLDFED]

For the future...it's Merriam-Webster.

 

[Texas Star]

I remember when Jeff did that and his explanation about the origin and its application to ancient Greek warriors, called hoplites.

He was an intellectual and a bit of an elitist. But I think we needed such a word. Just don't expect the media or the public to understand it.

 

[zzzippper]

Can you use it in a sentence?

And just because someone says a collection of syllables is a word doesn't make it a word until it is recognized by a wordographer. See? I just made that up.

 

[BaldEagle1313]

Can you use it in a sentence?

And just because someone says a collection of syllables is a word doesn't make it a word until it is recognized by a wordographer. See? I just made that up.

I can make one up, and use it in a sentence. "I only own handguns made out of steel, with stocks made of wood. I think I must have Glockophobia."

 

[Cooter Brown]

Sure it's a word. It is a neologism. Just because it is not in conventional dictionaries does not mean it is not a word. It is well understood in the gun community.

However, if you have an acquaintance who gets a thrill out of claiming it is not a word because he can't find it in a dictionary, just let him be. We don't care, and you should not either, whether he thinks it is a word or not.

Precisely. Hoplophobe is at least as legitimate a word as "twerk", and it has the additional attraction of not being exceedingly annoying.

If "google" and "twerk" can be verbs, "hoplophobe" can most certainly be a noun.

 

[Bat Guano]

I don't know if the Colonel was a "elitist" but he knew stuff and was a credit to the species.

We could use a few more of them around these days.

(Does Obamacare cover hoplophobia?)

 

[timn8er]

If people's insistence on using "conversating" has managed to get it into dictionaries, I don't see why it won't work the same way for hoplophobia.

 

[5Wire]

If people use it in a consistent way, it's a word.

 

[zzzippper]

If people use it in a consistent way, it's a word.

He hath spoken. Ebonics is the new pronunciation of the language!

 

[brucev]

Is it a word? To some, yes. Is it widely and commonly recognized and accepted. Of course not. At best it is a invention... about like the word homophobia. The difference is that while the latter word is no more significant that the former word, the latter word is repeatedly repeated in by a sympathetic press to create an air of legitimacy by usage. That's how language works. It is created by usage. The dictionaries, etc. merely describe it, etc. Those who wish to legitimize the word hoplophobia must find ways to get a broader range of people to use the word. The shooting community is simply not a large enough demographic.

 

[jlrhiner]

Irregardless.

 

[finesse_r]

Is this here hoplophobia thing contagious and is there a vaccine to prevent catching it?

 

[5Wire]

I've heard there's a Four-Step program... OODA, a neat map.

 

[fat tom]

Is this here hoplophobia thing contagious and is there a vaccine to prevent catching it?

If it is,no worries. Obamacare will cover it.
f.t.