Fygophobia

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

Fygophobia

n.
the fear that your connections with people will keep dwindling as you get older; that one by one, you’ll all go flying off the merry-go-round in wildly different directions, sailing through various classes and jobs and interests, ultimately landing in far-flung neighborhoods where you’ll hunker down with your families plus a handful of confidants you see a few times a year, perpetually reassuring each other, “We should keep in touch.”

Greek φύγω (fýgo), I leave + -φοβία (-phobía), fear. Compare the Greek φυγόκεντρος (fygókentros), centrifuge. Pronounced “fahy-goh-foh-bee-uh.”

Fygophobia

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

Pâro

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

Holiette

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

Wytai

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

Kenaway

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

Anechosis

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

The Unsharp Mask

a mirror with a reflection of a person

Lockheartedness

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

Latigo

aerial view of a city at night

Scrough

a person working on the sidewalk

Kinchy

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

Mal De Coucou

a blurry image of several men

Star-Stuck

a man walking towards a door with a large question mark

Gaudia Civis

a close-up of a gear

Catoptric Tristesse

Cover image for the Catoptric Tristesse word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Aftergloom

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

Tillid

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

Xeno

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

Fool’s Guilt

Cover image for the Fool’s Guilt word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Future-Tense

a person looking at their reflection

Routwash

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

Mogging Folly

a person sitting on a bench

Evertheless

a person floating in water

Poggled

a person studying a book with a magnifying glass

Hem-Jawed

an abstract image of someone touching their face

Latigo

aerial view of a city at night

Nullness

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