Epistrix

several doors standing in a dark room

Epistrix

n.
a disconcerting cluster of endings that all seem to happen at once; a random barrage of departures and closures and divorces and series finales and celebrity deaths, which leaves you anxiously aware that the author of your story seems to be wrapping up an awful lot of loose ends.

Ancient Greek ἐπὶ- (epi-), on top of + ὕστριξ (hystrix), a porcupine. To sit on a porcupine is to feel the pain of too many endings all at once. Pronounced “ih-pis-triks.”

Affogatia

miscellaneous items on a table

Anaphasia

Cover image for the Anaphasia word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Archimony

a person looking at broken furniture

Nementia

Cover image for the Nementia word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Emorries

a magnifying glass over photos and books

Addleworth

Cover image for the Addleworth word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows