Rialtoscuro

a blurry image of a light source

Rialtoscuro

n.
the disorientation of stepping outside a movie theater into unexpected darkness—a twinge of jet lag after letting your mind escape to some other world for a while, only to be thrown abruptly back into reality.

Italian rialto, a theater district + oscuro, dark, obscure. Compare chiaroscuro, which describes a quality of visual art that emphasizes the contrast between deep shade and bright light. Pronounced “ree-al-toh-skyoor-oh.”

Ecsis

a hand holding a fossil

Ellipsism

a hand clawing at a wall

Angosis

a table full of food

Future-Tense

a person looking at their reflection

Grayshift

a spiral staircase from above

Starlorn

snow flakes in the dark

Aponemia

a group of people standing together

Nodrophobia

close-up of a stained shirt

Mogging Folly

a person sitting on a bench

Adomania

a person riding a horse

Moriturism

a person resting in the back seat of a car

Aoyaoia

a person holding a guitar

Tornomov

a cloudy sky and landscape

Elosy

a blurry image of a person in a subway car

Achenia

a close-up of a bottle with an organic object inside

Karanoia

a neat stack of white paper

Eftless

a person with hands pressed on a window

Irrition

a close up of a dandelion

Looseleft

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

Nowlings

a pile of black and white puzzle pieces

Incidental Contact High

Cover image for the Incidental Contact High word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Walloway

water faucet that seems to emanate from the ground

Innity

a neatly made bed with diffused light glowing

Offtides

close-up of a chromed metal object

Heartspur

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

Dorgone

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

Volander

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