Standard Lemma guide

paruresis

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˌpɑːjʊˈriːsɪs/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • US: /ˌpɑrjʊˈrisɪs/
  • US: /ˌpɑrəˈrisɪs/

1

noun

Meaning 1

The inability to urinate in the presence of others.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From para- (“abnormal, defective”) + -uresis (“urination”). The term was coined by Williams and Degenhart in their 1954 paper "Paruresis: A survey of a disorder of micturition" in the Journal of General Psychology 51:19-29.

Across languages

Translations

7 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Dutch: paruresis — Translations
  • Dutch: plasangst — Translations
  • Dutch: plasvrees — Translations
  • French: parurésie — Translations
  • French: urinophobie — Translations
  • German: Paruresis — Translations
  • Spanish: paruresis — Translations