Origins
Formed from terminal as it appears in cinema and literature as a liminal space where normal rules loosen and identity becomes temporary. The root draws on the airport-as-nowhere motif seen in films such as The Terminal, where time, accountability, and social roles blur.
Meaning
Certain places suspend the usual expectations of who we are. Surrounded by strangers, schedules, and constant motion, we feel briefly unmoored from the routines and relationships that ground us, and temptation arrives wearing the disguise of permission. Terminalis is the uneasy pull of anonymity, where old habits sense an opening and recovery must stand on its own without the reinforcement of familiar accountability.
Usage
Walking through the concourse with no one who knew me, I felt Terminalis settle in before I even reached my gate.