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

Hobsmacked

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Star-Stuck

a man walking towards a door with a large question mark

Burn Upon Reentry

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Covalent Bond

Cover image for the Covalent Bond word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Pâro

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

Nullness

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Xeno

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Eigenschauung

Eigen-schauung

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Latigo

aerial view of a city at night

Scrough

a person working on the sidewalk

Soufrise

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Tirosy

a close-up of a young child's face

Mogging Folly

a person sitting on a bench

Tillid

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

Amentalio

a person in a white dress, facing away

Fitching

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Mal De Coucou

a blurry image of several men

Hickering

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

Moriturism

a person resting in the back seat of a car