Knellish

a blurry image of a person lying on a bed

Knellish

adj.
afraid to relax your body and drift off to sleep because you can’t help but notice how much it rhymes with death—lying flat on your back, your hands clumped on your chest, trying to force yourself to let go of consciousness, knowing you’ll almost certainly find your grip again but unsure exactly how that happens.

Armenian քնել (k’nel), sleep + knell, a ringing announcement of a death. Pronounced “nel-ish.”

The Til

Cover image for the The Til word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Angosis

a table full of food

Fellchaser

a blurred shadow of a person in a dark room

Foilsick

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

Holiette

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

Yeorie

a woman with tendrils of smoke moving across her face