paraphilia
noun
para·phil·ia
ˌper-ə-ˈfi-lē-ə 
ˌpa-rə-
: a pattern of recurring sexually arousing mental imagery or behavior that involves unusual and especially socially unacceptable sexual practices (such as sadism or pedophilia)
Examples of paraphilia in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
For those with paraphilia, the burglary is a cover story.
—
Tribune News Service, oregonlive.com, 22 June 2019
It's estimated that roughly one third of the population experiments with some form of paraphilia at least once in their lives, with 17 percent regularly engaging in their kinks.
—Andrew Paul, GQ, 24 Apr. 2018
More commonly discussed types of paraphilia are things like pedophilia, zoophilia, and objectophilia.
—Eliza Thompson, Cosmopolitan, 14 Feb. 2018
Tribune News Service, oregonlive.com, 22 June 2019
It's estimated that roughly one third of the population experiments with some form of paraphilia at least once in their lives, with 17 percent regularly engaging in their kinks.
—Andrew Paul, GQ, 24 Apr. 2018
More commonly discussed types of paraphilia are things like pedophilia, zoophilia, and objectophilia.
—Eliza Thompson, Cosmopolitan, 14 Feb. 2018
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'paraphilia.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Paraphilia.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paraphilia. Accessed 30 Oct. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
paraphilia
noun
para·phil·ia
-ˈfil-ē-ə
: a pattern of recurring sexually arousing mental imagery or behavior that involves unusual and especially socially unacceptable sexual practices (as sadism, masochism, fetishism, or pedophilia)
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