Knellish

a blurry image of a person lying on a bed

Knellish

adj.
afraid to relax your body and drift off to sleep because you can’t help but notice how much it rhymes with death—lying flat on your back, your hands clumped on your chest, trying to force yourself to let go of consciousness, knowing you’ll almost certainly find your grip again but unsure exactly how that happens.

Armenian քնել (k’nel), sleep + knell, a ringing announcement of a death. Pronounced “nel-ish.”

Heartmoor

a campfire with a kettle many small logs

Enterhood

adults with stern expressions holding a child

Justing

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

Irrition

a close up of a dandelion

Inerrata

a hand holding a broken cup

Feresy

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