Scopophilia
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A sexual dependency on openly observing sex organs and sexual acts, as opposed to voyeurism which is secret. uncountable
"At first feeling somewhat inhibited in his watching by Sam's presence (perhaps due to an inferiority complex), Jake freely indulges in his scopophilia once the other man is gone, growing excited by the sight of this woman whose dance includes undressing, donning some jewels, and then stroking herself."
Example
More examples"At first feeling somewhat inhibited in his watching by Sam's presence (perhaps due to an inferiority complex), Jake freely indulges in his scopophilia once the other man is gone, growing excited by the sight of this woman whose dance includes undressing, donning some jewels, and then stroking herself."
Etymology
From Ancient Greek σκοπός (skopós, “watcher”) + -philia (itself from the Ancient Greek φιλία (philía, “love, fondness”)).
Related phrases
More for "scopophilia"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.