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awfulize

awfulize v. to imagine or predict the worst circumstances or outcome. Editorial Note: The first cite is an unrelated nonce usage. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)

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  • Years ago I was told that people in some social-science field use the verb “horribilize” in a similar sense. Sociology? It means selectively considering the negative aspects of a question and following their implications down the worst path. It’s different from despair or depression because it’s active. But I can’t document horribilize (or even be sure that’s how it is spelled).

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