Siso

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

Siso

n.
a solitary experience you wish you could have shared with someone else—having dinner in a romantic setting, reaching the summit after an arduous climb, having a run-in with a crazy stranger that nobody’s going to believe—which makes you look around for confirmation that it even happened at all.

Welsh si-so, see-saw, an invention that can only ever be enjoyed by multiple people; when used alone, it’s just a wonky bench. Pronounced “see-soh.”

Wenbane

a person standing on a ledge looking at a city skyline

Adronitis

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

Trueholding

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

Heartmoor

a campfire with a kettle many small logs

Vellichor

shelves with many books stacked and organized

Keir

a snowy landscape with trees and a fence