Winnewaw

a person wearing a party hat

Winnewaw

n.
an unexpected burst of good news that only makes you skeptical, believing that every sudden rise in your fortunes must inevitably be accompanied by an impending fall, which leaves you feeling uneasy at the end of a really good day, waiting around for the punch line.

Middle English winne, joy + wawe, woe. Compare williwaw, a sudden blast of wind descending from the mountains to the sea. Pronounced “win-uh-waw.”

Winnewaw

a person wearing a party hat

Wollah

a person with shapes raining on them

Nilous

a person standing at a bus terminal

Ironsick

a group of random devices

Craxis

a tall house of cards

Kadot

a person looking at an abstract spiral

Knellish

a blurry image of a person lying on a bed

Offtides

close-up of a chromed metal object

Caucic

a close-up of a stone walking path

Furosha

a storm raging in the sky over a building

Rialtoscuro

a blurry image of a light source

Dystoria

close up of water drops on a window

Arroia

people standing on a stage

Evertheless

a person floating in water

Aimonomia

close-up of a plant with lights glowing in background

Beloiter

a person sitting at a slot machine

Hem-Jawed

an abstract image of someone touching their face

Suerza

a tunnel with a light emanating from the end

Tirosy

a close-up of a young child's face

Kinchy

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

Pâro

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

Énouement

a hand opening a curtain

Agnosthesia

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

Karanoia

a neat stack of white paper

Amentalio

a person in a white dress, facing away

Falesia

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

Aponemia

a group of people standing together