thalassophobia UK /θəˌlæ.səʊˈfəʊ.bi.ə/US /θəˌlæ.soʊˈfoʊ.bi.ə/ noun1 •A morbid fear of the sea or, more generally, deep, large bodies of water such as lakes.The polka dots are scars left by the cookiecutter shark, a thalassophobia-inducing creature with jaws designed to remove round plugs of flesh. — 2021