includence · noun — the withdrawal of a person within a routine that they cannot escape, a forerunner of pathological melancholia. It carries an Arena rating of 1399, earned across 12 head-to-head judged battles.
Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, includence ranks #50 of 17,205 for The Improbable, #258 of 17,171 for Scariest Words, #581 of 17,176 for Most Incisive Words, #2,924 of 17,207 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound.
Why “includence” is a great word
A state of withdrawal into an inescapable routine, considered a precursor to pathological melancholia. From the German *Inkludenz*, a 1960s neologism coined by Hubertus Tellenbach, itself derived from Latin *inclūdō* ("confine, imprison"). Unlike “remanence”—Tellenbach’s term for a later, clinging attachment to lost objects—or a general “withdrawal” from engagement, includence is the initial, confining act of erecting a cell from habit. It is the breakfast eaten with ritual precision, the afternoon walk taken along identical steps, the evening’s tasks performed in unvarying sequence—a life not yet haunted by loss, but already preparing its quiet, orderly tomb.
❧ Essay by Lexicurio’s AI · definition, etymology & citations from published sources
Etymology
From German Inkludenz, a 1960s neologism coined by Hubertus Tellenbach, derived from Latin inclūdō (“confine, imprison”).
noun
- The withdrawal of a person within a routine that they cannot escape, a forerunner of pathological melancholia.e.g.“Tellenbach himself explains the melancholic phenomena of includence in terms of the characteristics of the pre-melancholic personality that society explicitly sanctions and promotes.” — 2008, Thomas Rütten, “Rufus’ Legacy in the Psychopathological Literature of the (Early) Modern Period”, in Peter E. Pormann, editor, On Melancholy: Rufus of Ephesus, →ISBN, page 248, n. 16:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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