hemophilia

Definitions

hemo (blood, from haima) + phil (love/affinity) + -ia (condition) = literally 'a love of blood.' That sounds backwards for a bleeding disorder. The trick is the medical sense of -philia: not affection but 'abnormal affinity or tendency.' The body behaves as if it has an affinity for bleeding — it can't stop.

Why It Means This

Hemophilia is the classic example of -philia's medical drift. Coined in the 19th century, it follows the Greek pattern phil = love, but doctors used -philia to mean a tendency or affinity, not affection. So 'blood-love' is really 'blood-tendency': the body keeps bleeding. The same -philia, not the everyday 'love,' explains words like haemophilia and necrophilia.

Example Sentences

• 1.

  Hemophilia is passed down through families and mostly affects boys.

• 2.

  A small cut can be dangerous for someone with hemophilia.