Wollah

a person with shapes raining on them

Wollah

n.
something you’ve misunderstood for years without knowing it—a familiar word with a weird pronunciation, a favorite saying that means the opposite of what you thought, a well-known factoid that was disproven years ago while you weren’t looking—making you want to stress-test the foundations of your understanding of reality.

A mispronunciation of the French voilà, “behold!” Pronounced “wawl-uh.”

Incidental Contact High

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

Redesis

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

Inerrata

a hand holding a broken cup

Heartspur

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

Aftergloom

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

Nodrophobia

close-up of a stained shirt