claustrophobic
- adjective
- /ˌklɔːstrəˈfoʊbɪk/
- The elevator looked claustrophobic and unreliable, so I took the stairs to the second floor.
- feel claustrophobic
- claustrophobic room
- claustrophobic space
We are trapped in this tight little claustrophobic hallway and on the other side of the door is an infinite vastness.
- We are trapped in this tight little claustrophobic hallway and on the other side of the door is an infinite vastness.
- To really make it feel like you are in this claustrophobic setting is totally miserable, depressing ass shit as you hear people dying and crying around you.
Examples
-
We all file inside, into the claustrophobic dark, easing onto the spongy wooden benches surrounding the hearth.
Fiction book (2002) -
The small office felt extremely claustrophobic, making it hard for anyone to concentrate.
-
You know, it's a little claustrophobic in here for me.
-
- It is so claustrophobic in here.
-
- It's very claustrophobic in here...
-
The room was filling up with children now, creating a claustrophobic feeling.
Fiction book (1999) -
Now, the trip to the bottom takes about two hours, and it's cold and claustrophobic and cramped and totally worth it.
-
Tell me, Samantha, do you ever feel claustrophobic in here?
-
Some found the cities claustrophobic and everyone's business entirely too public.
Fiction book (1998) -
Both of us preferred the claustrophobic, air-conditioned chill of the living room.
Fiction book (2001)
Synonyms
A space that is too small for people to move easily
Being kept in a small space makes you restless and unhappy
Feeling trapped by walls or rules that stop you moving
Making it hard to breathe because the air is hot, close, or not fresh
A space that is uncomfortably small and makes you feel trapped
A room or space that is too small and cramped
Kept in one small space and unable to leave
Antonyms
How Cramped
Surface Forms
Morphology
claustrophobic = claustrophobia (semi-transparent) = claustrophobia + ic
Formally derived from 'claustrophobia' + '-ic', but the adjectival use applied to spaces ('uncomfortably small') shifts from 'having a fear' to 'causing or suggesting that fear', so the relation is not fully literal.
Etymology
Claustrophobic comes from the same parts: claustro- 'closed' and -phobic 'fear'. That's why we call a small, windowless room or a space with a low ceiling 'claustrophobic' when it feels tight and makes people feel trapped.