Author John Koenig on his least-favourite words

John Koenig is the author of The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows (Simon & Schuster; 2021), a collection of hundreds of words created by him over 10 years. Each word indicates some little ache, joy, urge or emotion that is experienced in daily life but rarely acknowledged, and for which the English language had no name. Looseleft, for instance, is the sense of loss experienced after finishing a book. Sonder is the realisation that each passerby’s life is as vivid and complex as one’s own. Koenig uses ancient languages, parts of existing words, fragments of feeling, to coin his terms. There are a lot of words we need that we just don’t have yet, he argues. Are there also words he wishes we wouldn’t use, misuse or overuse as we do? Take a look at some of Koenig’s least-favourite English words. Watch 12 OTTs in 1 App with personalised recommendation. Explore OTTplay at https://ottplay.onelink.me/YE8d/25pl33ap