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.”

Desanté

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

Kerisl

piles of old books scattered in an abandoned room

Addleworth

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

Volander

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

Emorries

a magnifying glass over photos and books

Merrenness

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