Redesis

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

Redesis

n.
a feeling of queasiness while offering someone advice, knowing they might well face a totally different set of constraints and capabilities, any of which might propel them to a wildly different outcome—which makes you wonder if all of your hard-earned wisdom is fundamentally nontransferable, like handing someone a gift card in your name that probably expired years ago.

Middle English rede, advice + pedesis, the random motion of particles. Pronounced “ruh-dee-sis.”

Immerensis

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Thwit

close-up of a person with forehead wrinkled and holding their head

Caucic

a close-up of a stone walking path

Volander

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The Til

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Fitzcarraldo

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